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| Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal | |
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| Topic Started: May 20 2016, 12:13 PM (1,624 Views) | |
| Mr. D | May 20 2016, 12:13 PM Post #1 |
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The SCW Owner and Leader of the Nation of Moderation
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Taking Hold of the Flame Battle Royal THIS IS NOT THE ORDER OF ENTRY: 1. Shaun Cruze 2. Greg Cherry 3. Regan Street 4. Kelcey Wallace 5. Red Rayne 6. Taken* 7. Taken* 8. Lexi von Aaron 9. Kris 2 10. Blake Mason 11. Shilo Valiant 12. Catalina Herrera 13. Amy Chastaine 14. Jynkz 15. James Evans 16. Casey Holliday 17. AJ Helms 18. Syren 19. Ravyn Taylor 20. Selena Frost 21. Simon Lyman 22. Dylan Howell 23. Eli D'Angelo 24. Vixen Cain 25. Reserved (Cain) 26. Kiin Do Rah 27. Katie Steward 28. MV 29. Reserved 30. Miller 31. Stacy Kissinger 32. Alexis Quinne 33. Kayl Reserved 34. Tyler Tucker 35. Craig Thomas 36. Kennedy Street 37. Kayla Jones 38. Angelica Jones 39. Jake Starr 40. Justin Davis RP Limit: 2 RP per person Deadline: Noon ET Saturday, May 28, 2016 (NOTE THE DEADLINE - IT IS NOT THE SAME AS THE REST OF THE SHOW DEADLINE) |
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| Greg Cherry | May 24 2016, 01:42 PM Post #2 |
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Member of the Nation of Moderation
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OOC: This role play consists of events entirely off-camera. The only thing available to the public will be the promo in the second role play. ----------------- Friday, May 20th 2016 Des Moines, IA Something hit me when Jake and I lost that tag team match to AJ Helms and Shaun Cruze by disqualification. I was nowhere near where I wanted to be. I didn’t win the Trios Tournament, I didn’t beat Shaun one-on-one and I have accomplished literally nothing since coming back and I had only one goal…win the SCW Championship or at least be the champion in my hometown of Pittsburgh. I’m not even close to that now. Not long after that episode of Breakdown, I had a heart to heart with Jake and told him that I wasn’t sure if I could help him much longer. I actually went to his house when we both had a day off the road and we were alone. I just needed to get some stuff off of my chest. Cherry: So I’m sure you wanted to know why I was over here… Jake: Because I invited you here? Cherry: Besides that, there’s a reason I accepted the invitation. Jake: Because you’re a good dude that appreciates his friends? Cherry: Would you stop? I’m serious. Jake: Hey, you’re the one making statements that require blatantly sarcastic retorts. Cherry: Jake, I don’t know if I’m helping you at all. Jake: What do you mean? Cherry: This whole thing with us being tag team partners again. It’s not that I’m doubting our teamwork because we’re damn good. Hell, we’re former tag team champions. REAL Tag Team Champions…not whatever the hell Shaun and I were. Jake: Right…what are you getting at? Cherry: Jake, I don’t know if I have the drive to keep going. Jake: Don’t do that… Cherry: No, listen to me. Ever since I’ve come back, I’ve had one goal and I’m sure that with you being as good as you are, you want to be SCW Champion again, I get it. I know that we can help each other out, but…I’m not even close, Jake. I’ve won what…one or two matches since I’ve come back? Jake: Greg, come on. You know that you’ve got a chance to do it. If we keep beating people’s asses with my chair and your…man, you need a weapon. It’s much more fun. Cherry: That’s not my point. Jake, I don’t know if I have it anymore. I came back hyping myself up that after two years things would be different but now I’m doing my career much more of a disservice by coming back. I’m seen as a joke and I’m starting to believe it. I can’t win the big matches, I can’t get the upper hand on anyone and I can’t be taken seriously when all I do is lose. I’m tired of it. I need to go home and think about everything. I’ve already done everything I possibly could do. I’ve won championships, big matches, main evented Rise to Greatness twice, I’m in the Hall of Fame for fuck’s sake…I don’t have anything left to do. I came back because there was something I WANTED to do…but it’s clear to me now that it won’t happen. Jake: … Cherry: You’re not going to say anything? Jake: What do you want me to say, Greg? I feel for you. I understand the frustration. Cherry: I don’t think you do, Jake. Think about this. You’ve been SCW Champion three times and I’ve been champion four. Since I came back in 2009, you’ve had all three of your reigns. In the last 3,250 plus days…I have been champion for 24 hours. It has been FIVE PLUS YEARS since I was SCW Champion. Nobody in the history of this company has gone that long in between World Title reigns…and that’s assuming a miracle were to happen and I win the title again. Jake: You should’ve been a statistician, your memory with numbers is incredible. Cherry: Are you even listening to me? Jake: Yes! I’m trying to lighten the mood, damn. What do you want me to do? I want you to be here. I like the fact that you’re back and that we’re teaming up again. And I hate to say it, but as far as friends go in this company, they’re few and far between. We don’t have many of them. Cherry: I’m sorry, Jake. I just need to go home and think about everything. I’m going to be 30 in November. I’ve really accomplished more than I could ever dream of at this point and I have to start thinking about how I’m going to live my life once SCW is no longer a part of it. Jake: So, that’s it? You’re just done? Cherry: I don’t know, man. I have to think about these things. Jake: Well, as your friend, I can’t be unbiased because I want you to stay. That said, as your friend as well, you have to do what you have to do. If you decide to come back, I’ll be here. If not, I’ll make things work. I always have. Cherry: Thanks Jake. I’ll still be by your side, but I don’t think I’ll ever compete in the ring again. I need some time to think. Jake: Take the time you need. I’ll be here. And I thought that was it. My glorious comeback to SCW didn’t even fizzle out. There was nothing that even started to have fizzle out. I embarrassed myself in this last run. I didn’t get retribution on Shaun Cruze. I didn’t get to win the Trios Tournament…I didn’t accomplish anything that I set out to do and with the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal looming, yes, I was scheduled to be a part of it, but I wasn’t sure now. It was a long road back to Pittsburgh that night. I drove for hours with very few stops, only stopping to get some gas or get a little bite to eat before going back on the road again. All the while I thought as I was driving home, was it even worth it to come back? I’m Greg Cherry and I’m a big name in this company but I am doing more detriment to my legacy than I let on? With as much as I’ve been a screw-up, I’m surprised SCW doesn’t revoke my Hall of Fame status because I’ve been that much of a disappointment. At this rate, I wish Shaun and I would have lost the Tag Team Title match two years ago so I wouldn’t even have to go through this. I would’ve been forced into retirement and I told SCW brass to hold me to it, because I knew I’d get the itch again. All of these grand gestures, the Trios Tournament, the Gauntlet of Champions, the big return that I had have all been trying to lead me to one thing and one thing only… I wanted to be SCW Champion in Pittsburgh. Nine years ago, I defeated Xander Valentine when nobody thought I had a shot. I beat him in the middle of the ring one-on-one, straight up, like a man, 1, 2, 3. After that match, what was going to be my reward? I would have main evented Rise to Greatness where I had the chance to break the then-longest World Championship reign in SCW history and oh yeah, just before the event, I would walk into my hometown as the SCW World Champion. That Sunday night in June nine years ago, I was on the verge of doing just that. Then, the boss decided to book me in a dual-title ladder match where I had to defend my championship against Xander’s United States Championship. I’m not going to go back to the excuse where I got concussed days beforehand, because that’s weak now. The fact of the matter is that I beat Xander fair and square and he didn’t deserve a rematch. Yes, I did go on to what would be the longest title reign in SCW history at the time which stood for years, but I would’ve given that away to be World Champion in Pittsburgh. It still bugs me nine years later. Something I should have done at arguably the height of my career was robbed from me for petty, personal reasons. I haven’t forgiven the boss for that and I don’t know if I ever will. And that’s why this run and the last one have been so disappointing to me. I came back in 2013 and all I did was lose…a lot. This one looks like a damn near mirror image. It’s been eating me alive that after all these years in my journey to accomplish the one thing I should’ve done nearly a decade ago…it’s not that I don’t want to…it’s just that…that… It’s that I cant. I’ve done everything I could possibly do. I don’t know if I’m coasting off my reputation and believing that I’m still as good as 2007 me, but I seemingly can’t put it all together anymore. It may be that everybody has become more advanced and they’ve passed me by. Maybe I’m sticking to a formula that worked for me years ago and it’s just not now. What wins matches in 2016 is not what won matches back in 2007. All my attempts to get back at people for what they’ve done to me, all my chances to prove people wrong have come up short. I’ve been proving people right about me for years to the point it makes Kennedy Street look like Nostradamus. Why am I wasting my time? I can’t keep doing this if I’m not going to come close to the SCW Championship again. My only shot is to win the battle royal, but I almost have to laugh. In what world do I have a chance in hell of winning it, much less becoming the only person in SCW history to win it twice? That’s not me anymore. I’m not the Greg Cherry of old. I’m not even 30 years old and I’ve become an afterthought. I peaked young and it’s been all downhill from there. There is no other peak for me to climb. My career is effectively over. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Saturday, May 21, 2016 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania I was back at home after a long night of driving. I couldn’t even relax because I was hoping to spend time with my children but that seemed out of the realm of possibility with what Ashley did to me. I had no wife, no kids, and realistically no career. I don’t think I had ever been this depressed as long as I lived. I mean, there have been things that have gone on in my life that have sent me close to going off the deep end…Ashley being pregnant to another man, finding out that Eddie was the other man…the two of them running off to be together and leaving me behind. Coincidentally, a lot of the worst moments of my life involved the two of them. I’ve never even taken a single loss in SCW this hard…me losing the SCW Championship to Shilo Valiant after only holding it for a day came pretty close. I’ve never felt like this though. I didn’t know what to do to end all this heartache and frustration that I felt…but then an idea came to mind. An idea that I’ve only thought about one other time in my life, but I didn’t have the heart to do it… I went to the gun safe that I had in my house and pulled out a 9mm that I had set back for Ashley in case we ever went out to the shooting range. I brought it over with me to the couch and set it on the coffee table and looked at it for a minute. Everything that had gone on in my life the last few years was terrible. I don’t remember the last time that I was truly happy and it had gotten to the point where no matter what I did, no matter where I was and no matter how I treated other people…I couldn’t do anything right. As I stared at the gun, I thought to myself, would this be easier for everybody involved if I just…wasn’t around? I let out a long sigh…and I picked up the gun. I inspected it and looked at it with the worst thoughts I’ve ever had going through my mind. I can’t believe that I’m at this point in my life where I’m actually contemplating this. And the only thing I could hear when I was looking at the gun, the only possible sound in the world that could possibly stop me from doing the stupidest thing any person could ever do…was a knock on the door. I wasn’t expecting anyone. I didn’t even think anyone knew I was home. I put the gun down on the coffee table and opened the door and saw someone I hadn’t seen in months. Cherry: Jack…what are you doing here? Jack: I saw your car parked outside, which seemed unusual so I was just making sure you were home. Cherry: Yeah…I’m home. What’s up? Jack: Nothing. Finally got a weekend to relax, so I was driving around and… Jack stopped mid-sentence and pushed past me into my house. He walked over to the coffee table and lifted the gun off of it and turned back to me. Jack: What the fuck is this? Cherry: …It’s a 9mm gun. Jack: What the hell is it doing on your coffee table? Cherry: I was looking at it before you came in. Jack: Greg, you sound very shied back about this and I’ve known you for a long time. Were you planning on doing something incredibly stupid? Cherry: Jack, I… Jack: No, you know what? I don’t want to know…no, yes I do. What the fuck, Greg? Were you going to throw everything away? Why? What could you possibly be thinking? Cherry: Jack, honestly. What do I have left to give? Jack: Are you kidding me? Think of your friends and family who care about you. Cherry: Oh, I did. And that’s the thing, Jack. I don’t have them anymore. You’re way too busy with running your gym to even see how I’m doing anymore…sans today, and someone else who I thought was my friend ran enough to another time zone to fuck around with my ex-wife. When I threw him out the window all those years ago, I should’ve finished the damn job. As far as friends in SCW go, I feel like Jake is the only one but he doesn’t even see what I go through. And speaking of, my entire return to SCW has been an unmitigated disaster! I wanted to come back and win the SCW Championship and hold it in Pittsburgh, and I had the shot to do that by winning the Trios Tournament but I failed. And now, my only hope is to win a 40-person battle royal. Jack, I can’t even beat one person nowadays, what the hell makes anyone in their right mind think I can beat 39? Jack: Greg, do you remember what happened six years ago? You were in pretty much the same position then as you are now. You weren’t winning many matches but you walked in to the battle royal and you won it and main evented Rise to Greatness. What’s different? Cherry: There’s a lot of things that are different. First of all, Taking Hold of the Flame was in Pittsburgh. It was in my backyard, so that helps. Second, I drew the final number so a lot of people were gone. Third, I had family and friends that I was fighting for and rooting for me. This year, it’s 40 people, I’m no shoe-in to draw last, the show is in Toronto, and I have no family or friends that will be with me. It’s completely different now, Jack. Jack: Well, this right here is not the answer. This world doesn’t need another tragedy on it’s hands and certainly one that could be prevented. Jack checked the gun and noticed something odd about it before looking back at me. Jack: There are no bullets in it. Cherry: I know…I’m not stupid. Jack, I wasn’t…just because I was thinking about doing it doesn’t mean that I was going to go through with it. Jack tossed the gun on to the couch. Jack: Why didn’t you tell me that you were this far down? Cherry: Jack, we’ve been friends for close to 12 years now. I shouldn’t have to tell you, but you’ve been so entrenched with your business that your friends are an afterthought. I’m already an afterthought in my professional life, I don’t need that in my personal life too. Jack: Stop, you are not an afterthought. Cherry: You’re right…I’m not thought of at all. Jack: Greg… Cherry: No, Jack. Don’t try and do your schtick where you talk me up to myself. The facts speak for themselves and I’m on the verge of being ready to hang it up for good. I’m not even 30 years old and I’ve had hit my peak. I can’t climb the mountain again. I’ve tried several times and I’ve failed. There’s a reason that the last successful World Championship defense I had was nine years ago. I can’t do it anymore. Jack sat down on the couch right next to where he had tossed the 9mm. He put his head in his hands for a few seconds before looking back at me. Jack: Okay…maybe I haven’t been the greatest friend in the world. In fact, I’ve neglected you and many others for the last two years. I guess I didn’t realize how much you needed me. Cherry: Jack, between you and Jake, you’re all that I have. You know that girl who works for SCW Corporate, Jessica? Jack: Maybe? Cherry: I was flirting with her off and on for a bit after I split with Ashley, but I haven’t heard from her lately either. So without you, it was only Jake and if Jake ever decided he didn’t need me, then…that gun may have been loaded…because I’ve gotten to a point in my life where I just want the pain to end but it keeps getting worse. I have lost everything that I ever held near and dear to my heart and I have fought my ass off to try and get something back and I just can’t… Jack, if I go into that battle royal in Toronto and I don’t win, then I have nothing. A lot of people say that there are certain things on this Earth that are “life or death” situations and 99.9% of the time they’re exaggerating, but this is part of the .1% where it is not an exaggeration. If I enter that battle royal, I am risking my life, my heart, my soul, my everything. It will be the only thing on this planet Earth that matters to me because this business has been my life. And the thing is…I don’t believe that I can. I feel like I’m going to be led to heartbreak one more time and then what do I have? A consolation big time match at Rise to Greatness? There is no consolation. When Ashley and I made that bet in 2010 that I would have to win the SCW Championship before I got to see her again, I fought my ass off and had probably one of the best six month runs that anybody could ever ask for…but I don’t have Ashley anymore. I have to fight for me and throughout my entire life; I have had the hardest time standing up for myself. Everything that has thrown at me, I don’t bounce back and fight back, I just absorb it. It all hits me and it’s been hitting me for 29 years. I was teased in elementary school, physically assaulted in high school and throughout my SCW career, mocked, mentally and physically abused to the point where that gun nearly played the starring role in the end of my life. Jack, what could I possibly have left to give? I have given my everything for this way of life. I have sacrificed things that I probably never should have given up just to get ahead in this business and yes, I’m in the Hall of Fame and that’s great, but in my life now, where has that gotten me? I am no more respected or admired or even liked now than I was when I stepped into that ring in 2004 for the very first time, ironically enough in Toronto. I just don’t know if it’s worth me trying anymore. Jack: Okay, listen, if it’s training you need, you can work out in my gym… Cherry: Jack, all due respect, but fuck your gym. Jack: Excuse me? Cherry: I don’t need a trainer. I need a friend. I have Jake but he’s in the match too. Jack, I need something to fight for and for whatever reason…my life doesn’t seem like it’s worth enough. Jack: Your comment aside…I think I have an idea and I’m going to tell you right now that you probably won’t like it, but you’re going to have to trust me. Cherry: Why? What are you going to do? Jack: Just trust me. I’ll tell you what, I’ve never been more frightened by three words than I was with than what Jack said. The last couple of years, it’s been nearly impossible to trust anyone but me because I’ve been all I had, but Jack knew me better than anyone else on this planet. It just makes me wonder what he could possibly have in store for me. But after he left, I picked up the gun and put it back in the gun safe. I, at least, wanted to hear Jack out and see what he had planned. But if this didn’t work, if I felt no desire to go back after what he had planned, I wanted a backup plan. I wanted something foolproof to eliminate the pain. I reached back into the gun safe and brought a single 9mm bullet forward and placed it beside the gun. One way or another, I’m going to make sure that the agony is gone forever. Don’t worry about me…I’ll be fine. And…scene. |
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| James Evans | May 24 2016, 03:46 PM Post #3 |
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I'll Probably Quit Soon
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OOC: This rp I am quite proud of. It is diving into a few of the things I've toyed around with when it comes to James' development. I am approaching them full blast now. The portions in italics are a dream/hallucination James is experiencing. There is no promo for this rp. Not sure if I will be doing one at all. I make reference to a few SCW wrestlers in the dream/hallucination, but they are not known by name. Olek said as long as it's a dream then I am in the clear. Either way, enjoy it and good luck to all in the Rumble. [align=center] D R E A M - A - L I T T L E - D R E A M [/align] |
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| Jake Starr | May 24 2016, 09:56 PM Post #4 |
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Official SCW Social Misfit & Apparent Telemarketer
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"One Last Hoorah" - SCW RP #288 Opponents: Taking Hold of the Flame Battle Royal Date: 05.24.16 |
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| The Voice | May 25 2016, 04:05 PM Post #5 |
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Advanced Member
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OOC: Very excited to start my rps for THOTF. Best of luck everyone. Here is my first for Kiin Do Rah. Hope you all enjoy it. [align=center] The animal is ignorant of the fact that he knows. The man is aware of the fact that he is ignorant. Victor Hugo ![]() I never thought highly of Supreme Championship Wrestling. Their heroes crude... and villains unspeakably plain... But maybe this place holds a glimmer of potential... If allied to my vision and brain. Listen well, fools and lesser creatures. I have hope that there is sense in you yet. I tell you right now, there is nothing... Nothing you can do to prevent this. It's already destined to happen. And I'm not talking of victory. Victory in your land is as hollow and as pointless as your tournaments and titles are to me. Hmph. Your 'Best of the Best' has yet to receive any sort of compensation towards the World title. How... disgusting. No, I speak not of victories, but of ascension. I'm speaking of migration and arrivals into your land. In such a short time you won't even notice, your precious little world will change. Because there is a battle royale that is expected... and who shall it be who will reign? Certainly, there are those who have already pled their case, trying to sway the betting odds in their favor. Trying to gain some last minute mental advantage perhaps? Perhaps... or maybe they are just trying to convince themselves that they are as invincible as they pretend to be. Unfortunately, lesser creatures, the answer is usually... no. And as for you sitting in your seats, all I have to say to you... is Be Prepared. Be ready to hail your new king. And long shall he reign. I could go on for hours about what's coming. I could tell you precisely what I mean, who I am, and what I will do. I have enough material to drone on for hours. Not as long as someone say... Selena Frost can, quite the storyteller that one, but then again, I always believed in being concise and To. The. Point. The people I have beaten, and the foes who have fallen never to rise again. It would shock and amaze that SCW has scored such a superstar in their... hehe little battle royale. 40 men... heavens... Quite a stocked market you have there, lesser creatures. The gates are down, and the animals are free to roam, charge, run, and hunt. So... The question becomes... who is KING of this particular jungle? Or rather... who is going to CHALLENGE the king? Who is the one who can rise above the other creatures as challenger for the king of your land... Whoever that may be. And before we get any further, let me say this right now... so that there are NO errors in your understanding. Let me explain right now why, just why, I am here now. I WILL BE KING! Absolute and complete. Title or no. I reiterate. I... Will... Be... King. There, I've said it. And now we may continue. Personally, I find this whole set up pathetic outside the battle royale. Your main event is a joke, with the champion having never won a number one contenders match when she won the title, nor has your challenger... they were just picked at random because they decided to act like idiots outside the ring. But that's rewarded here apparently. Pathetic. Yet, good to know. Whatever happened to people earning their title shots. But wait... isn't that what THIS is for? Surely this battle royale will produce a RIGHTFUL challenger for one on one combat with the reigning KING?! RIGHT?! But Wait! No! Not so! Because Kelcey Wallace holds her neat little contract from Trios closer to her chest than Syren's plastic surgery bill. Yes, I have done the research. Did you think I would march into this place without knowing my prey? Hmm? You must really not know who I am. Nevertheless, lesser creatures, we all know what is going to happen. Even if she doesn't win, and let's be honest... Kelcey Wallace's time as THOTF winner is LONG OVER... She will cash in that trios contract... and use it for Rise to Greatness once again. And look... ANOTHER Triple Threat Match for the SCW World title that involves Kelcey Wallace. Does that sound familiar to any of you? But then again, what else do you expect from such a place? Fresh Blood, creatures... that is what this place sorely needs. Fresh blood to revive SCW. We see the stars and gods of SCW stand and our blood goes... cold. These 'hollow' things cannot make our hearts pump and our blood race anymore. They are, as you would say... boring. Yes, boring is the right word to describe this place now. For many reasons. The endless cycle of the past few years have yielded nothing but predictable results, actions, and even perhaps a little yawn is expected here and there, isn't it? My my my. How does that feel? To be called 'Boring', SCW? Does that make your people mad? Does that fill them with a sense of indignation? Or are you simply asking 'Who the hell is this person? What does he know about entertainment? What does he know about the wrestling world'? Well... How astute of you to ask. And here I was thinking I would have to spell it out for you. My name is known in the wrestling world, but I assure you that none of you would have ever imagined that I would come here. This place is... beneath my usual hunting grounds. I deal with the more... shall we say, bloodthirsty federations in the world. Your... UNDERGROUND as it were, or was, would have been an average Tuesday for me. The scars on my body pay tribute to the battles and wars I have waged. In fact the only reason I have come to SCW is for this night upon us. Forty men and women all fighting... most desperately clinging to the chance of a lifetime. To take their career and plunge into the stratosphere for the chance of IMMORTALITY! 39 superstars ready... 39 sets of eyes only on the prize. I say 39... not 40. Because, I find it laughable. Laughable that you see this match only as an opportunity to earn something. Earn a title shot in a month's time. Ha! Foolish little monkeys; All ignorant of what this battle royale truly is. Not a test... not a tournament... FORGET ABOUT THE WORLD TITLE FOR A SECOND AND REVEL IN WHAT YOU HAVE IN FRONT OF YOU! The chance to return to our roots. You see, Mankind, despite its... trappings and disguises... are savage creatures. We create in order to destroy. We war in order to rule. We kill in order to stay the same... to remain where we are. Not to improve or better ourselves, we are willing to KILL to just stay as we are... to protect what we have. Yet we pretend to be so much better than the other creatures in this world. Those deemed lesser than ourselves. Heh. Well, this battle royale, ladies and gentlemen, will place us back in our natural element. And I wonder which of you will embrace that killer instinct that dwells within us all. For some of you... it may just be a whisper that you hear. Others, that voice may as well be a thunderclap going off in your brain with every heart beat. Just like me. Please, by all means. Look me up. Find out what you can of the Savage Scar. The Savage Nobleman of Wrestling welcomes you to it. I have nothing to hide. Find out what you can about the name: Kiin Do Rah **** The Scarred Saga Entry for Taking Hold of the Flame (#1 of 3) Scarred Psyche --------- One Month Ago ------------ Professional Xtreme Wrestling. Kiin always laughed at the name. Like some teenager trying to sound cool in the 90s. He never called the company by its full name, preferring to always refer to it as PXW. If Kiin Do Rah laughed about the name, that was as far as his humor went about the company. The place was a veritable mad house, run by a brilliantly sadistic man named Deacon Sawyer. Kiin had been wrestling there for some time, and while one could list the accolades he had accumulated since his arrival, for the sake of his story, all that needs to be said was that on this night, he was facing KING for the PXW World Elite Title. It was a mouthful, but all the same, KING had been undefeated for the better part of a year since his arrival under the guidance of his manager, the notorious Killian Hades. Of all the 29 champions who had won the world title in PXWs 6 year existence, Hades had managed 10 of them. Kiin turned to glance over at the man in the suit outside the ring. Hades held up his hands with a shake of his head, as if to say 'I'm not doing anything'. Fortunately, Kiin knew better. He always knew better. With a defiant wink to the silver tongued manager, he turned back to the lumbering champion. King was easily a foot taller than Kiin, and twice his size. He was pulling himself up after a nasty neckbreaker, holding his massive head with his frying pan hands. Kiin didn't wait, he rushed forward, aiming low and barrelled himself into the kneecaps of the larger man. KING went rolling over hard on the ring. Kiin was on him in a second, dropping knee after knee into KING's head. He was trying to press, keep the big man from regaining any stability whatsoever. Because the second I do... His thought was answered by a huge arm swiping him away. It had been a blind shot, but luck was on the big man's side. He caught Kiin in the ribs and sent him stumbling back. It didn't hurt that much, but KING wasn't trying to hurt him with that hit. Just get him away from him. And that brief instance was all KING needed. Regaining to his feet, he adjusted his stance and dug his feet onto the mat. Kiin sighed. He was right back where he was before. Only worse, because now he had managed to piss the big guy off. Hades: Hey, Champ! KING turned to his manager who had somehow managed to produce a baseball bat that he held out to his client. Kiin would have said something, but it wouldn't have made any difference. This was a no dq World title match, as most title matches were in PXW. The Nobleman was far too away from his chains, his weapon of choice. They were on the turnbuckle behind KING, and there was no way that the behemoth was going to let Kiin anywhere near him. Hades: Sorry Kiin... just business. Yeah, just business. Kiin would have been happy to kick Hades into next week... THAT would have been business AND pleasure for once. KING stood there with his bat, gripping it tight but taking his time, making sure Kiin knew exactly what the score was. Kiin was already trying to calculate his odds. He could walk away, take a few seconds and rethink. No... that would surrender the high ground. The second he would try and get back in the ring, that NO DQ rule would allow KING a free shot with that baseball bat... And KING only needed one good shot with that thing. With no other option, Kiin took his vest off, wrapping the leather around his hands. As they circled each other, Kiin tried to anticipate what way KING would strike first. Fortunately, KING answered it for him, swinging hard to the right. Kiin pulled his vest as tight as he could, blocking the bat back with a snap. He took the moment to draw in close, his aim to wrap the vest around KING's gargantuan neck and tighten. As he leapt, he felt the big hand wrap against his ankle and pull. Kiin's flight was instantly halted as he was hurled to the ground. He only had enough time to raise his arms as the bat came down across where his head had just been. Frantically, Kiin kicked at the big man's shins, bouncing off those tree trunks without so much as a dent. KING slammed the bat down, Kiin dodging it and wrapping his arm around it. His feet in perfect position, he held on tight as he delivered kick after kick into KING's face. The champ grunted every time one connected, and at about the 6th time, KING stumbled back. Kiin kipped up, rushing forward, but then felt the sudden pain in his ribs. Looking down, he saw where he made his error. KING had used the bat handle length wise like a battering ram as he saw Kiin rushing forward. Gasping for air, Kiin's knees buckled as he tried to will his body to take in air. KING was over him now, the bat raised his, the target.... Kiin's head. Kiin (growling): NOW! On cue, from under the ring sprang PWX's team known as The Scavengers! Rank, his brother Dez, and Rio. Within seconds, they were on the reigning champ, the bigger Rank wrestling the bat away from him. The look on KING's face, not to mention that of his manager, was priceless, for the simple reason that up until this point, the Scavengers WORKED FOR KING! Hades: WHAT ARE YOU DOING YOU IDIOTS?! WHAT THE FUCK?! GET OFF HIM! Kiin had to grin. He had been hoping to not have to use this little ace card up his sleeve. He had secured the three hyena clothed Scavengers a week before. No matter how gifted a speaker Hades was or how terrifying KING's frame may have been... they had forgotten the golden rule of warfare. If your soldiers aren't content at least in some way... they will not obey. Kiin was no saint, but even he knew that the Scavengers were nothing more than meat shields to the champ and his mouthpiece. All Kiin had to do was promise them a better existence, and PWX tag team gold. They had been all too willing to turn. And now KING was paying for his lack of effective leadership. He swatted at Dez who, much smaller than KING, ducked under the brute's arm and wrapped his legs around the big man's head, driving him down into the ground. Rio and Rank dropped a bare of elbows as the crowd went nuts over this sudden betrayal. The three pounced on KING as he tried to get his hands up, pummelling the champion into Ring Mat Pate. Was it honest? No. Was it fair? Probably not in the grand scheme of things. But this was the way things were done in No Dq matches. It was about how far you were willing to go to win. And Kiin Do Rah... was willing to go as far as he needed to. Kiin: Enough! The three stopped and looked up to their new employer. He gestured to Killian Hades with a grin. Kiin: Make sure he watches. The three turned as Killian, knowing he was in trouble, turned to run. The three threw themselves out of the ring, lunging on the broken man, dragging him to the lip of the ring apron as he watched in horror, Kiin flexed his hands as KING tried to struggle to his knees. As soon as he did, and his head was high enough, Kiin gripped the skull of the big man in his hands and squeezed, his arms bulging as he applied pressure. This was his move. The Red Claw. Only a few weeks ago, the year long ban had been lifted on his finishing move, which had been deemed 'Too Dangerous' for competitive use. KING had finally pushed the management too far and now... the Red Claw had returned. It was a simple enough move, grab the skull by the sides and SQUEEZE as hard as one could. Fortunately for Kiin, he had one hell of a grip. Unfortunately for KING. KING couldn't struggle, Kiin figured it was due in part to the Scavengers. One of them must have gotten in a decent shot that had done more damage than Kiin had figured they could do. All the same, KING twisted and turned as best as he could but he didn't have the strength to pry Kiin's hands off his skull. Hades yelled at the top of his lungs for his client to fight it off. He screamed at the hyenas that held him to release him so he could possibly aid his client. It was a perfect sight. KING was toast. It was only a matter of time. And then... Kiin Do Rah felt something give followed by the loudest crack he had ever heard. --------- The Present Week: MAT CHECK EPISODE - AIRED MAY 23rd, 2016 ------------ Matthews: Good morning everyone, I am Henry Matthews, and THIS is MAT CHECK! The opening graphic flashed and spun around on the tv screen. Kiin could see what was being broadcast by the small television off to the side. Before too long, the camera returned to the live feed. Henry Matthews was a man of tall stature. His appearance was carefully maintained and corrected if anything came out of place. It appealed to his meticulous nature, and Kiin knew that as a fellow Brit, nothing less than perfect in their work would be a waste of time. Matthews: Here today, a very good friend of mine. I am so pleased that he is here. He is the reigning PWX World Elite Champion, Kiin Do Rah. Welcome Kiin. The live audience applauded nicely. It was good that in most cases, the audience could tell the difference between what happened on the television show, and what was going on out of it. Was Kiin a bit of a bastard when the cameras went on for PWX... Yes. Did that matter as much? Nah! Afterwards, for the most part, he returned to being himself. Jeremiah Kofu. Kiin: Thanks for having me. Kiin adjusted the title belt on his shoulder. He HATED carrying around the thing outside the shows. It was just a piece of leather and cumbersome as hell when he wasn't in the show. How some boxers had 3 or 4 of these things at once, he never understood. He just cared about what they represented. Matthews: Today marks the one month anniversary of your reign as PWX World Elite Champion. How you feeling about that? Kiin: In a word... BORED. He laughed at that. Kiin: Bored because so far, I haven't gotten a single name for my first title defense. Anyone whose been offered the shot has declined and stepped away for 'vacation'. Heh, what vacation, right? It's the middle of May, not bloody Christmas. Matthews: You think that has anything to do with how you won the title? Kiin: I said I was going to make a statement when I won the World title, and I'll be damned if I didn't. Matthews: There are some who say you went too far in your match. Because of the last few seconds and your Red Claw manoeuvre, Darren Pearl, aka KING had three fractures in his skull and has since had to retire from wrestling. Kiin: He knew what he was getting into, Henry, before he got into the ring. I warned him. I told him to leave Hades and his bat at the door. I told him that the second he brought out his... I would bring out mine. Matthews nodded. Behind the curtains, Henry had had no problem with the brutality that Kiin Do Rah exhibited during his matches. But on TV, he had to play the host very carefully. He had warned Kiin about that the first time they had had a sit down interview a year ago. Matthews: And bring it you did. Let's take a look at just what happened in that pivotal moment last month. The boys in the back cued up the footage of KING about to make like Hank Aaron on Kiin's head and the sudden arrival of the Scavengers. The footage then goes to Kiin applying the Red Claw. As Kiin watched the footage, he had to smile. He actually hadn't watched the match ever. He preferred not watching himself work. He saw the moment his hands skipped in from the pressure as the skull gave in. Matthews: Let's talk about the Scavengers first. Originally thought to be fiercely loyal to KING, they turned on him to help you win the title. How did you convince them to do that? Kiin: You know, Henry, my father used to have a saying. A leader of none is no leader at all. Matthews: You mean, if you don't have any followers - -? Kiin: Exactly. For months, I watched the Scavengers get picked apart while KING was hustled away by Killian Hades. All I had to do was get them alone and show them that they could do so much more. Since then, I have been in constant negotiations to get them in line for a tag team title shot against Spears and Kincade. Henry nodded. Henry: The Dead Pro Society. Very popular tag team and a long reigning championship team for sure. The Scavengers had one title match against them, and it was halted when KING marched to the ring and attacked the Pro Society. Kiin: Exactly. The man halted a championship title match, effectively screwing his team out of the titles they worked so hard for... and for what? To feed his own ego. Well, KING has a lot to think about now... and a lot of time to do it. Henry: So... no regrets about permanently injuring KING? Kiin: None. Henry: You sound sure. Kiin: It's like I've always said in all of my promos... Be Prepared. KING wasn't prepared. Not for me. And he paid for it with his career. I don't see a lot of people complaining after some of the things he pulled over the years. Henry: No, he certainly was not as popular for his actions, but some would blame Killian Hades for that. Kiin: Killian doesn't give a... care about KING. I guarantee you that he's already on the lookout for his next client that he can move to the front of the line. Henry: Has he ever asked to manage you? Kiin did not answer that question right away. He just smiled. Kiin: I don't think Hades and I would get along very well. As far as brains go, I've got the Lion's Share and unfortunately, Hades doesn't like people smarter than him. Henry: Makes for bad soldiers I suppose. Kiin: Naturally. Henry: So does that mean you are smarter than the Scavengers? Kiin laughed. He had been set up perfectly for that. He should have seen it coming. Kiin: Oh, Henry. You're trying to get me in trouble. I think my new band are smart enough to know that with me, they can be assured of more opportunity, more success, and better treatment than under KING. KING was so bad to them that I am a better alternative just as I am. There's no need to sugar coat anything. Henry: So what's next for you in the wrestling world? Other than being World Champion? Kiin shrugged, because he hadn't really thought about it. Kiin: Honestly, just been wondering who my next challenger is going to be. Haven't really thought about anything outside of PWX when it comes to wrestling. Henry: And the World title win, of course, must have been a great feeling for you. Kiin: It was... but unfortunately there was some tragedy that happened that night too, so I haven't really had a chance to soak it in. Henry: I see. Kiin: Still trying to deal with that. Henry: And will that effect your upcoming title defense, against whomever it may be? Kiin forced a grin, faking his way through to avoid dwelling on that night... Kiin: If there's one thing you can say about me is that I know how to put aside the personal crap and deal with the business at hand. But Henry was putting his finger to his ear at that moment looking away. Henry: Uh... Sorry Kiin, I'm just getting word that we are being called by a very special guest. I am actually a little surprised by this so why don't go to a commercial break and we'll get ourselves ready. We'll be right back with Kiin Do Rah, PWX World Elite Champion and a special surprise guest that you DO NOT want to miss. Stay tuned. Kiin fought down the urge to get mad. This was HIS moment after all. All the same, losing his shit wouldn't have looked good either. So he bit his tongue and waited for Henry to explain. Henry: Uh, I'm sorry Kiin... It's just... well have you ever heard of a wrestler named Jason Zero? --------- A few years ago. ------------ They were yelling. He couldn't understand them, because he didn't speak Arabic. He hadn't needed to. All he had needed to do was know how to do what he was ordered to do. All the same, the fact that he couldn't understand a word made him angrier and angrier as the prying hands of these bastards pushed and pulled him every which way. He couldn't even tell where he was being pushed, for there was a bag on his head. All he knew was that he could hear the laboured breathing of the Captain, and the others. All but one. Lexers was dead. His throat had been slit right in front of them, his left to rot in the sun. The desert wildlife were probably enjoying him right now, unaware of the life that had been literally cut short. 'YOU BASTARDS'. That was Jones. Samantha Jones. Unfortunately bearing the same name as a character in Sex and the City, Sam was the exact opposite of the fictional character. While the latter was a sexaholic slut with a passion for fashion, Sam was every bit a tomboy as one would expect from a 5 foot 6 woman with a military buzzcut. Her outcry earned her a sharp blow to the face. She grunted in pain as she swung from the sudden attack. They pushed them further until the light was gone. Only darkness seeped in through the bag. Before too long, he was slammed onto the hard ground, his knees cracking as they forcibly met rock the hard way. Then there was a voice. 'You Americans will pay for what you have done to our land.' No one else spoke. Whether this was out of fear or the inability to, he was not sure. He didn't want to know. He wouldn't be surprised if they had killed the others on the way in. He could still hear Jones and the Captain, but other than that... nothing. 'For all the blood you have shed in the name of your false God... you will find yourselves exposed as the monsters that you are. We will show you to the world what happens when you anger the might of Allah.' The self righteous crap made him want to puke. These bastards... fighting in the name of their God. They just used that as a cover to justify the horrible things they had done. This war would have never happened if someone, it didn't matter who in this case or what conspiracy theory was right, hijacked an aircraft and flew it into American soil 15 years ago. The bags were suddenly removed and he squinted at the light being shone at him. His first inclination was to look to his side as soon as his eyes adjusted. He saw them. The Captain, Pearl, Jones to his right... Graves had been dead from the get go, a victim of standing on a landmine that had been the start to the ambush. Her and Lexers were probably the lucky ones. Colonel Mellard had been blown through a wall and was probably dead too. He couldn't be sure. Which made Captain Kofu in charge. They had been trained for this... but it was one thing to handle a simulation... another thing entirely to have to endure it for real. 'Before this camera...' the voice gestured to the camera in question. 'You will state the evilness of your country and its leaders. You will renounce your sinful ways or you will be executed for all to see.' Graves: You're going to kill us anyway. That's what you do. She was struck for that several times for that. That was when the Captain spoke up. Kofu: Stop it! Ok! Look. We came here on a peaceful mission. We were responding to an SOS set by one of the nearby villages. There was a collapsed building and - - 'I know what you were doing, infidel.' the voice said with a scowl. 'We were the ones who made that message for your superiors to receive'. Kofu: Wait... you told us there was a crisis so you could capture us and torture us? 'That is the least that you deserve.' He couldn't help it anymore. He couldn't hold it in. Jeremiah: And you call US monsters?! He spat down at the ground. Jeremiah: You fucking hypocrites! We'd never do that - - Captain: Jeremiah, keep your damn mouth shut! 'Oh you wouldnt?' the voice responded. 'You whom have imprisoned our people, terrorized our land, and brought shame to our culture. YOU criticize OUR methods?' He wanted to say more, but he followed his Captain's orders. Captain: Sir. Whatever you think you are going to achieve with this, I can assure you that America does not react well to its peace keepers being tortured. They will find you, and whatever you do to us will be brought back on you much worse than - - 'You think we fear death? You think we are afraid of what your government can do to us? We are protected by the higher power of Allah. You will come to know his greatness, or you will die.' The men reached over and grabbed Graves, which Jeremiah assumed was because she was a woman, and they were lesser in this idiots' culture. Gritting his teeth, he resisted every urge to charge. But all that would have accomplished was getting riddled with bullets. 'You will read this now!'. The voice ordered it, and the price for refusal was clear. A piece of paper was thrust at Graves. She took one look at it and looked back to the Captain before turning back slowly to the man giving the orders. Graves: Bite me. 'READ IT NOW OR WE WILL KILL YOU!' Graves: Again... Bite me you fucking pathetic cocksuckers. Immediately, she was grabbed and her head forced upwards. As the others watched, the man in charge pushed a button on the camera as Graves mouth was pried open with gloved hands. 'Attention American infidels... THIS is what happens when you send soldiers into our land.' Before Jeremiah could do anything, another one of their men appeared with a vat, without a word, he tilted his wrist and poured the contents forcibly down Graves throat. The smell of burning flesh immediately filled the air as her gurgled screams were like shrieks that made Jeremiah wince. He tried not to turn away, not give them the satisfaction. But as he watched, Graves knelt straight by herself for a second, coughing up blood and melted organs before falling down to the ground. She was dead before she hit. The acid still sizzled as it burned through her. Jeremiah: YOU SON OF A BITCH! He screamed it, wanting more than anything to kill what he saw before him. He couldn't look to the melted mess that had just been his friend. The man in charge smiled. He SMILED! Like what he had just done was something worthwhile! He then pointed to Jeremiah... 'He is next.' --------- Present Time: May 25, 2016: 2:13 am ------------ Kiin woke up with a start. His body was drenched with sweat. He checked the time. 2:13 in the morning. Well that's later than usual... He rubbed his eyes, his body tired, but his mind afraid to go to sleep. He glanced over to the moving mass in his bed with him. For some reason, he thought it was Bandit, his dog. But then he remembered that Jessica Moore, aka Valkryire in PWX, had been there. Why she had fallen asleep, he had no idea. Usually she had the good taste to leave before he woke up. He would have to talk to her about that later. Still, he had to get his mind settled if he was going to try and sleep again. They always came at him. At any point in the night. The dreams. Well, it was less dreams and more memories. He didn't know why he couldn't stop having these nightmares again and again. The doctor said it was PTSD or something like that. Kiin didn't care. He just cared that whatever it was, it affected his sleep. But maybe he deserved that. Maybe this was karma because he had lived. He sat himself down at the computer, checking his phone text conversation again. Sawyer: So we're setting you to face Casey Jones at EVEREST. Kiin: Alright. No problem. Any stipulations? Sawyer: Most likely. We'll let you know in the next few days. Kiin: That's fine. Sawyer: Try to not involve the Scavengers, ok? Kiin: Give them the tag title shot and I won't. Sawyer: Seriously? Kiin: Yes seriously. I'll tell them to hang back if you put them against DPS. Simple. Sawyer: I'm not saying yes, but I'll talk to the board. Kiin: You do that. Whose after Jones? Sawyer: What do you mean? Kiin: When I beat Jones, whose the next in line? Sawyer: You mean IF you beat Jones. Kiin: Yeah, ok. Sure. Hades' second string guy? Pretty sure I can beat him. Sawyer: Couldn't beat KING on your own. Kiin: That's a matter of opinion. So whose next? Sawyer: Well, we just signed a really big talent from SCW. Stephan Strange. It will probably be him. Kiin hadn't responded to that. That had been the second time that Kiin had heard about SCW in the last few days, the first time being when that phone call had happened during MAT CHECK... --------- Present Week (A FEW DAYS AGO): May 23, 2016 ------------ Kiin: Have I heard of Jason Zero? Of course. Who hasn't? He's the wrestler who killed his parents in that church. Henry: So they say. Kiin: Isn't he rotting away in prison? Henry: Should be. Kiin: So why is he calling here? Henry shrugged. Kiin figured the man didn't really care all that much as to why this was happening. Only that it was. Henry: He's a former multi time World Champion, titles across the board. In the Triad, he's one of the greatest names ever. Kiin: Triad? Henry: It is, or was rather, three feds that were connected: ULW, IWC, and SCW. ULW closed a while back. Kiin: So goes the business. A voice yelled out, reminding the two that they were on in 20 seconds. Kiin: Should I leave? Henry: No. Absolutely not. Might be interesting. Just try not to mention the murders ok? Kiin: THat's going to be hard considering my background. Henry: I know. Just... Be prepared ok? Kiin: Hey! That's my line! Someone motioned for them to get ready and started silently counting back from 5. When he got to zero, Henry's voice boomed to life. Henry: And welcome back to Mat Check. I'm here today with reigning PWX. Now I know it's been said that anything can happen in wrestling, and I guess that applies to its talk shows too, because joining us right now over the phone is Seven Time SCW World Champion, the 2012 Taking Hold of the Flame Winner, 5 time SCW Tag Team Champion, IWC World Heavyweight Champion, and one of the most decorated wrestlers in the history of the sport. Please welcome, Jason Zero. Zero, you with us? Zero: Oh I'm here. No need to worry about that. Henry: This is certainly a pleasure and a wonderful surprise! What brings you to MAT CHECK? Zero: Actually, I wanted to speak with the champ. Henry: Oh really? Are you a fan of PWX? Zero: Henry, I am a fan of anyone who understands that the wrestling world is a jungle, no more... no less. Hello Kiin Do Rah. May I call you, Kiin? Kiin's mind was already several steps ahead. He knew Zero was a Wheeler, and the Wheeler family was well known in society both for their entrepreneurships and their illegal activities. He was not about to give any ground. He may not have to be the KIIN DO RAH of PWX right now, but he wasn't about to be a push over either. Kiin: Yes you may. And what can I help you with, Mr. Zero? Zero: Please. Zero is fine. And it's not what you can help me with. It's what I can help YOU with. Just before I called in, I heard you say that you hadn't thought about what to do since you won that World title. Kiin: I did. Zero: Well, as luck would have it, my old stomping ground, Supreme Championship Wrestling, holds an annual battle royale. I know how much of a fan you are of those. Isn't that how you WON the chance to face KING in the first place, Kiin? Kiin: You are correct. Zero: Well, the battle royale is called Taking Hold of the Flame. I won it myself a few years back. But the best part about this little battle royale is that it is open to any wrestler in the world. Anyone can sign up for a spot if they want. Kiin: I see... Henry: Are you suggesting that Kiin Do Rah enter the battle royale? THere was a chuckle on the end of the line before the answer came. Zero: I'm simply saying that there are a lot of people in SCW that consider themselves well versed in the ways of animal law. There are those who think they know what blood thirst really feels like. But I haven't seen any of them crush a man's skull with his hands. Kiin: To be fair, Zero. I only fractured it. Zero: All the same... potato, potatoe. Kiin: And how would I have, if I were interested in it, go about 'signing up for a spot' as you so eloquently put it? Zero: All you would need to do is call Sasha D.. She will book you in an instance. After all, you can't open a sports magazine lately without finding out about how Kiin Do Rah beat KING with his bare hands... you're the talk of the town right now. She'd be crazy not to sign you. Henry sat there with his arms crossed. Henry: Well this is unexpected, folks. Kiin Do Rah and Jason Zero here live. We'll be right back after these messages. --------- Present Time: May 25, 2016: 2:19 am ------------ Kiin hadn't thought much of the rest of the interview. Zero had taken his time and talked about his past, drawing parallels to Kiin's current path as often as he could while upselling SCW. So much so that in the past day, Kiin had done a little research into this 'jungle' Zero had called SCW. And, to be honest, there was not much to it. At first, Kiin thought he was looking at a strictly women's league. All the title holders were women at this point. There was really nothing to offer him if that were the case, but as he dug a little deeper, he discovered that a few choice women had stepped forward to completely dominate the title scenes and main events. Now THAT was intriguing. Even Valkyrie wouldn't last long in the ring against Kiin... she barely lasted in the sack. Now Kiin was no fool. He knew Zero's type. Zero didn't give a crap about Kiin being challenged. Whatever reason he had to call were his own. Zero wanted Kiin in SCW for a reason, possibly to achieve whatever his ends were. Kiin didn't care... before Zero would even be able to make a move against SCW or PWX (if that was where he was heading) Kiin was going to know about it. For now... he would review what he knew. Kiin brought up a finger to curl a strand of his long black hair as he typed in the command on his computer. It had started out as a look into Stephan Strange. Kiin never left anything to chance. Aside from a stint in Arcana Asylum, Strange had not done anything too far out of the spectrum. He had wrestled for a few years in SCW, winning the World title from his former partner Shilo Valiant as well as having a few stints as tag team and Adrenaline champion. He was unorthodox and theatrical... Kiin had known a lot of people like that. But the name Shilo Valiant stuck out. Kiin had heard that name before too. It took him a while to remember, but a few months ago in the official POWER LISTINGS of wrestlers in American based Feds, Kiin and Shilo Valiant had actually been ranked back to back to one another. Perhaps it was that which had caused him to review Valiant. Or perhaps it was because he wanted to learn a bit more about SCW. Whatever the reason, he had keyed in Valiant's accolades and was struck by what he saw. Valiant had pretty much done it all. God of Wrestling, World Champion, US Champion, Tag Team Champion, the list went on and on. But it was the one accolade that caught his eye. Kiin: 2013 Taking Hold of the Flame Winner. So he had won it AFTER Zero. Interesting. Within a few moments, Zero had pulled up the history of the battle royale, and the fates of those who had won it. Some had gone on to be huge. Others had won it later in their careers. Either way, the accomplishment was considered legendary in the annals of SCW. In truth, if he hadn't learned any of this, Kiin would have been intrigued. Would have been interested in taking part. He loved battle royales. He loved the chaos that came from them. He was a hunter and always had been. Anything that was a challenge, Kiin looked for a way to overcome it. He had promised to always keep hunting. He had promised one month ago. Valkyrie: Couldn't sleep? Kiin turned to the half naked woman standing in his door way, her arms leaning on the frame. He had to admit, she always looked good. Red auburn hair and a look that just screamed crazy in the sack, which if he was being honest with himself, she really was... despite barely being able to handle him. Most women couldn't, anyway. Kiin: Why are you still here anyway? She seemed rather surprised by the question. With a small shake of her head she just sighed. Valkyrie: Fine. Fuck you. Kiin: Wait. He looked at her, liking what he saw more and more. And slowly, her frown turned back into a knowing smile. Kiin: Don't leave yet. ![]() --------- PROMO: PODCAST ------------ What does the Battle royale truly mean? What does it stand for? That's my question for today... Oh, the podcast... yes well.. We will see each other soon enough. Maybe soon, before the lights flash I will let you catch a glimpse of me. Maybe I will let you look me in the eye, but for now... accept this podcast. I think that might be best for both of us. Because I do not know what to make of you, SCW. What does it MEAN to be SUPREME? Literal Translation: To be Superior. And I fail to see how you are. Superior I mean. In no short order, You have no boss that runs the place really, your best idea is to put someone with a God Complex as your commissioner, and you can't have even have a main event where all hell breaks lose. In other words, you have supremely let yourselves turn into a veritable clusterfuck of hell blazing bitches and egomaniacal crazies... This is not to be Superior. This is to be chaos... The 'C' in SCW may as well stand for Chaotic. Simply Chaotic Wrestling. Yes... that would be more astute wouldn't it? But it doesn't. The C does not stand for Chaotic. It stands for Championship. So that is what is important here? Championships. The state of being a 'champion' here or wrestling with CHAMPION calibre. Well, it would seem from an outsider's point of view that if you have a second X chromosome, you have a distinct advantage in this place. Or it's just the way of the world right now. Maybe women are better fighters now. Maybe it doesn't matter WHAT you are down there... maybe all that matters... all that SHOULD matter... is the hunt. The moment... the fight itself. But none of you even care about that. Listen to you all. I came here because a certain set of circumstances lined up that brought my attention to this place. This isn't fate, and it sure as hell isn't destiny. It's luck. Blind, clueless, stupid luck. Good for me. Bad for the rest of you. And I can't think of a better way to get to know this jungle than by plunging headfirst into this battle royale. But the rest of you, heh... you don't give a shit about the match itself. All each and every one of you care about is the answer to the exact same question. 'What do I get out of it?' That's all the rest of you care about. You have no idea what it means to win this thing and what it represents. All you see is a golden ticket to the World title at Rise to Greatness, SCW's biggest main event. Well whoopdie fucking doo! You all glance over the match itself and look towards the end in sight. 'I AM GOING TO WIN AND THEN MAIN EVENT AND WIN THE WORLD TITLE!'. The match is an afterthought to you at this point. Do you know what it takes to win a battle royale of this size? Do you know how far you will have to push yourself to make it to the end? Try investing some time thinking about that instead of just skipping over this part like it's purely academic at this point. Because I tell you... it's not. It's anything but. You have no idea who is going to come through those curtains, SCW. You have no idea who will stand on that ramp and charge down to the ring. If you did... then my arrival wouldn't have surprised any of you. Maybe... it's not as cut and dry as every last one of you makes it out to be. Maybe there IS a degree of uncertainty that needs to be addressed. Maybe the main event at Rise to Greatness isn't what's important at this particular moment. It's a perk. The real reward is standing in the middle of the ring at the end of this long brawl... and knowing that you outlasted every last one of them. When the tide came, you fought back the wave, and you stayed standing tall. Have any of you ever fought the wave? Or did you drown in it again and again? I have spent my career fighting against the tide. Changing the landscape and burning new paths. That's what I do. That's who I am. At Taking Hold of the Flame, it's really very simple. I don't give a shit about the main event at Rise to Greatness right now. I won't be thinking about if I can beat the World Champion and win the title in a month. The ONLY thing that will matter... the only thing that is going to mean anything to me... How do I outlast the next person who comes my way tonight? Because that's what it's all about... weeding out the unworthy. Separating the wheat from the chaff. Determining who really rules this jungle! That's what battle royales are for, and this massive undertaking... from the powers that be, they would have you believe that it's all worth it for a chance at the World title. But they are only half right. It's worth it. I don't care if Chad Evans puts me in at number 3 or 40... I don't care. It's worth it. I don't care if I come to the ring and see God Almighty and Jesus Fucking Christ ready to double team me out of the ring, it's going to be worth it. Let them all come at me as fast as they can, and I will NOT be detoured from my hunt. It's ALL going to be worth it. But not because of that damn title shot. Not because of the main event you win your spot in. It's because the trophy is in winning the hunt. It's the heads you collect. It's the 39 other souls whose dream you just smashed because THEY WERE NOT WORTHY TO STOP YOU! ... ... ... It's about knowing that who you are and proving it to every last... one of them. The Taking Hold of the Flame Battle Royale... it is a battle of kings and queens, gods, and mortals. All equal, and all with something to prove. So far, all the rest of you are proving is you want something you can't have. Me? I set out to enjoy myself in this massive game hunt. And to prove that there is only one true hunter in SCW. The scar on my face, I want you all to remember it, because it will haunt you from this day on, belonging to the face of the man who hunted you... captured you... and made you his prey. My name is Kiin Do Rah, and at Taking Hold of the Flame, I want each and every one of you... to Be Prepared. BE PREPARED [/align] |
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| DavidHelms | May 25 2016, 05:00 PM Post #6 |
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SCW's Dangerous One!
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OOC: - So here's the score; I came up with this storyline idea several weeks ago and I was planning on taking Stone active again should IWC return, replacing one of my characters there with him... but then I thought to hell with it, Stone is known in SCW and with the openings being there, I figured I'd throw him in the flame! The CD features a fairly common trope I'll be the first to admit that, but I'd like to think I put an interesting spin on it and it's that spin that gives this some impact. Really happy with how this came out, hopefully I'll enjoy the second when I write that too. Enjoy! [align=center] ![]() Matty Stone: The Hardcore Icon Returns - Chapter 1[/align] |
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| HardyGirl | May 25 2016, 07:25 PM Post #7 |
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Method Writer
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[align=center]{{Wednesday, May 11th Boise, ID - After Breakdown}}[/align] Amy can hear her phone buzzing on the table from the bathroom of her hotel room. She's just got out of the shower, and is currently bent over, her hair flipped forward, as she dries it. She quickly wraps the red waves up into the towel, and stands up straight, flipping the thick twist back over her head. Not bothering to dress first, because hey, she's alone in her hotel room, she walks over to the table and picks her phone up to check the message. She grins at the name. <Hey... you ok? Took one hell of a tumble..> <Nothing a hot shower and a good night's sleep won't fix. Halfway there, just had the shower.> <So... no chance of meeting up, then?> <Didn't say that... name the place.> With the location settled, Amy gets dressed again, in black skinny jeans and a dark red halter top. She had been angry at the way her match against Shilo Valiant ended, with him trying to cheat, and all the run ins, and the no contest. Not to mention the things he said. She had planned on going to bed right after her shower, to sleep off her irritation. But her friend's invitation was much more enticing. Once downstairs and heading for the hotel's exit, she sees another friend that she'd been meaning to talk to, but wires kept getting crossed, James Evans. She stops and talks to him for a few minutes, but something seems... weird, about the way he interacts with her He seems annoyed by her presence, but also as if he doesn't want her to leave. Touching her arm, asked her to go grab drinks. Luckily she had an excuse that wasn't a lie – she had plans to meet another friend. She couldn't tell if James was glad or mad at her denial, but the whole thing made her uncomfortable. Leaving him in the lobby, she hurries to catch a cab to the agreed upon meeting place with the friend she actually wanted to spend time with tonight. No Japanese dive bar required. [align=center]* * * * * {{Friday, May 13th New Orleans}}[/align] In the outdoor seating area of a local restaurant, Amy and Wyatt sit at a table, glasses of iced tea in front of them. This isn't just a casual lunch date though. Gina is back in town, and she called Wyatt earlier this morning, asking to meet the both of them 'on neutral ground,' because she had something to talk about. Amy knew better than to think she was going to confess everything, but she did have a plan ready to confront the scheming woman if she was trying to run some new scam. Wyatt had been skeptical about even coming. He didn't think anything productive would come out of this, because he'd already decided he wasn't giving her any money, and it was too late for her to have a procedure, anyway. As far as he was concerned, he would just have to wait until September, and probably a court order, to find out if he was the baby's father. Amy didn't want to wait that long. She wanted this over with and settled as soon as possible. Wyatt didn't see how that could be done, because Gina so far had steadfastly refused to so much as look into the different kinds of prenatal DNA tests there were. Amy felt this was because Gina had been lying the whole time, so of course she was against anything that would reveal the truth one second before she wanted to. All this had been discussed this morning as Amy and Wyatt debated even coming here to meet Gina, and then on the way. At the moment, they sit in silence, having both said everything the needed to say on the subject, and tired of debating with each other. They were never going to see the other's perspective. All that was left was to find out what Gina wanted. Amy looks at her phone, pretending she's checking the time, but she's really looking to see if she has any messages from her friend. It had only been two days since she met with him after Breakdown in Boise, but she hadn't heard from him since, and she felt like something was missing when she didn't for more than a day. There are no messages. She sets the phone down on the table a little harder than necessary, thinking that that was a dangerous thought. She still barely knew the guy, and yet... she was looking for some kind of contact even as she sat here with the love of her life waiting to meet his ex-girlfriend, to talk about her baby that might be his- –when did her life become so goddamn complicated, Amy thinks to herself. Shaking her head a bit at her own thought, she answers herself, too. Her life had always been one soap opera story after another, and yet... this particular situation seemed even more 'out there' than most. And then she went and complicated it further, her disappointment at not finding any messages was a testament to that. Maybe she never should have left her hotel room in Japan.... Amy's thoughts are interrupted by the appearance of a stuck-up blonde walking towards their table, her abdomen finally starting to protrude, made obvious by the fitted top matched with running leggings. The sight of it makes Amy sick. And she would be willing to bet Gina wore this particular outfit on purpose to flaunt it. Slimy bitch. Gina approaches the table, the fakest of fake smiles on her face. “Hi... hope you haven't been waiting long.” And she takes a seat without waiting to be asked, or greeted, or anything. Amy doesn't trust herself to be civil just yet so she remains quiet. “Not very.” “Good. You guys doing ok?” Oh for gods sake... “Don't bother with the small talk. How about you get to what you wanted to meet us here for?” “I was just trying to be nice. I guess that's too much to ask from you. Fine. I have a.... proposition for you. Both of you.” “What could you possibly have to offer either one of us?” “Truth, maybe?” Gina glares at Amy, but addresses Wyatt. “Look. I know all this is difficult. But you know, you only made it harder on yourself. You could have taken care of this weeks ago by just paying for-” Amy leans over, ready to get this over with. “Let me stop you right there. Because that...is bullshit. You've been playing this close to the chest for weeks, probably months, but... I'm on to you. And before you bother with whatever this proposition is, I have one for you.” “Oh really? And what is that, exactly?” Amy picks her phone up, and casually navigates to the recording she has of Gina's phone conversation as she replies. “I'm going to give you the opportunity to come clean about everything... before I expose you and your lies instead.” “Amy? What are you talking about?” Gina eyes Amy's phone suspiciously. “ And how are you gonna do that, exactly? I mean... its hard to expose something that isn't there.” “Bullshit. Here's what you're gonna do. You're gonna cut the crap, cut the stalling. You're going to go to your doctor and request whatever form of prenatal DNA testing they offer. And when-” Gina cuts Amy off by waving her hand in the air in a negative gesture. “Wait a minute, hold on... I am doing no such thing! Do you know how they do those things? Amniocentesis. A long ass needle being jammed into my uterus, possibly pricking my baby. There's infection risks, miscarriage risks... no!” Even Wyatt looks at her confused, as Amy just smirks. “Funny you should care about that. Considering how not even two weeks ago you were practically begging Wyatt for money to have an abortion. This is just proof that you're lying. You were never going to actually going to get it done, were you? This is all about money to you!” Gina turns to Wyatt, incredulous. “Seriously? You're gonna let her talk to me like that? I am carrying your-” “First of all... Amy has a mind of her own. She can say whatever she wants to say. Secondly. I agree with her. For someone who was so ready to get rid of that baby two weeks ago, you're all of a sudden pretty protective of it. It doesn't add up, Gina. This whole thing never added up. I have tried and tried to give you the benefit of the doubt, causing arguments between Amy and I, and every time I turn around, there's something else that shoots another hole in your story. I'm done playing around, Gina. You need to do this test. I'm not having this hanging over my head for another four months.” Amy looks at Wyatt somewhat surprised. She hadn't expected him to be fully behind her like that when she demanded Gina do the test. She hadn't played the recording for him yet. Gina looks back and forth between them, and leans back in her chair, folding her arms over her slightly expanded belly. She glares. “You have no idea what you're asking me to do. Sure.. I was going to get rid of it. For you. Because I know that neither one of you want this. I was going to make the sacrifice to make things easier for everyone. But since you wouldn't pull the trigger and I have no choice but go through with this now, you are damn right I am going to do whatever I can to protect this baby!” Amy resists every urge she has to either laugh hysterically, or reach across the table and slap this bitch right across her lying mouth. She holds her phone up, finger over the play button. Wyatt just shakes his head at Gina, unaware of what Amy is about to do. “Really? You were really gonna do it, huh? Let's just see about that.” Amy holds her phone up, over the middle of the table, making sure that both Gina ad Wyatt can hear it, then presses play. Gina's voice emits from the Samsung's clear speaker. ---------- Click. “That doesn't matter, either. Even if he does give me the money before the cut-off date I gave him, I can make up some reason I couldn't get it done. Blame the doctor. Don't worry, our baby will be fine.” Click. ---------- The color drains from Gina's face. Wyatt looks at Amy in shock. Amy sets her phone down, a satisfied smirk on her face. “You want to try that again?” Gina recovers, and is now angry. She sits up straight, and leans on the table, glaring at Amy as if her stare could shoot arrows. “How did you-” “Does it matter?” “Hm. I guess it doesn't. Fine. You got me. I was going to keep it anyway. Are you happy now?” “Happy? Are you fucking kidding me? You spent six weeks trying to convince me to fork over money to 'take care' of this, when one... you refuse to offer proof it's even my responsibility, and two, you never intended to do it in the first place! What were you gonna do with the money, huh? No, you know what, I don't even want to know. It doesn't matter. Because you're not getting one penny, especially when I just heard you tell someone else their baby would be fine!” “When I said 'our', I meant mine and yours!” “Oh come on! Do you really expect us to believe that?” “You should! Because if you don't... your lives are going to be a living hell! I told you I had a proposition for you... well, here it is. This mess is all your fault!” Gina punctuates this with a finger pointed towards Wyatt. He looks as if he's about to contradict her, but she doesn't give him a chance to respond. In the distance, Amy sees their server start to approach, but back away at hearing Gina's raised voice. “That's right, your fault. You might have thought dumping me and immediately forgetting about me was the end of it. But oh no. Because then I had to quit my job. It's not like I was gonna keep working for you, right? And apparently you're some kind of... gym saint or some shit, because no one else around here would hire me, because they knew you, and, I don't know, have some... old boys club loyalty mentality or something. So I had to move back home. That's I went back to Chicago. And you know, cost of living there is so much higher than here. My parents wouldn't let me stay with them. I'm too old for that, don't you know. I had to basically empty my savings account just to pay deposit and rent and background checks and everything else that goes with renting a place.” “Oh, cry me a fucking river! No one made you-” Gina continues as if she didn't hear Amy. “So, I finally got a job a a gym there, until they found out I was pregnant! They weren't allowed to fire me... and even though yoga is actually very safe and healthy for pregnant women, they wouldn't let me lead my class! Something about liability, as if I was gonna actually hurt myself. So they forced me to be an assistant, which pays less. Which means more using my savings just to pay rent. And my parents are fucking useless, because according to them, I'm a whore who deserves this for getting myself into this situation unmarried. So... here I am, practically broke! And seeing as how all this started with you tossing me out like the garbage... it's only right that you pay – literally – for ruining my life!” Silence hangs over the table for a few seconds after Gina's rant. Amy and Wyatt exchange a look, and then Amy starts laughing. “You... are insane.” “I already told you... you're not getting one penny out of me. Especially not after you've been lying all this time! For all I know, you're lying about losing your savings, too!” Gina gives him an intense stare, that to Amy, looks as if she's about to burst into tears. Amy believes her about not having any money, or at least much less than she had before. She knew that look of desperation. And if it had been anyone else, Amy might have had some sympathy. But not for Gina. Not the woman who disrespected her daughter, and lied, and tried to scam money out of her boyfriend, all over a child that Amy is certain isn't his. “I haven't run out yet. But I will. Soon. And it's only fair that you pay me back for everything I-” “Wait a minute. What about... whatshisname? Your boyfriend, the guy I met when I went to the doctor with you.” Wyatt's valid question seems to calm Gina down a bit. Amy just listens, curious about this herself. “Adam? He's helping when he can. But mechanics don't make as much as you would think. But I know that I could get things back on track, if I could just replenish everything I had to spend when I had to move back home.” “Just for shits and giggles... how much are you talking about?” Gina glares at Amy, but answers anyway. “Ten grand.” Now it's Wyatt's turn to laugh. “Okay, now I know you're insane. I wouldn't give you fifteen hundred, what the hell makes you think you're getting ten K out of me?” “Wait... back up just a minute. You just admitted that you knew long before you showed up here that you were pregnant. So, that's another lie. I've lost count.” “Amy makes a great point. You specifically told me you only found out a week before you came to me. Is there anything else you want to admit to lying about? Amy's been right this whole time, hasn't she? It's not mine, and you know it. Right?” Gina hesitates, and Amy can tell she's thinking, hard. “Come on, Gina. You might a well put everything out on the table. There's no point in pretending, okay? We know you're lying.” Her arms folded over the near-six-month along belly, Gina sighs heavily, looking down at her stomach. A few seconds pass, and she shrugs, before looking back up, and Amy can see the resolve in her eyes. “Fine. No. It's not.” Wyatt leans both elbows on the table, dropping his face into his hands. Amy's almost nauseated with the mixture of relief and pure rage bubbling up inside. She can't hold her tongue and doesn't even try. “You disgusting.... lying... manipulative... BITCH. You better thank whatever god you pray to that I'm a better woman than you....” Amy can't even finish the threat, she's so utterly livid. She's contemplating getting up and punching her face in anyway, broken teeth won't hurt the baby... “So let me ask you again... what the fuck makes you think we're giving you anything?” Gina's mood returns to 'evil harpy' like a switch flipped, and she smirks at the both of them. “Because if you don't... I go to the media. I tell them that this baby is yours, and you're denying it. Do you really want to be responsible for making your precious Amy look like the worlds stupidest woman for sticking by a man who won't acknowledge his own child?” Amy's rage dissipates enough for her to laugh at this. “That's not going to work. I'll get a court order for that DNA test and then you'll look like the lying bitch that you are.” Gina's smirk widens. Wyatt just listens, at a loss for words that this woman he spent six months with has reduced herself to blackmail. “It doesn't matter. You know how the masses work. Once the idea is out there, the truth won't matter. The public will have already made up their minds. A lot of people already look down on you after your drinking problem became public. Oh, don't give me that look, Amy! You can pretend like you have millions of loving and supportive fans, but I know the truth. You lost a lot of them after that. Do you really think your career can handle another scandal? Think about it. You can forget about getting that championship rematch. Or even a shot in the other place. You know, the one you went to the ring tripping over your feet drunk in? Your bosses might even think you're more trouble than you're worth, and just let you go completely.” Amy just sits, listening to this line of complete bullshit, shaking her head in pure rage. Gina turns towards Wyatt, directing vitriol at him. “And you? How is it gonna look when the public finds out about your little four year vacation in the New York State prison system? For manslaughter? Oh, and the victim was Amy's best friend. Yet she defends you against my claim, allows you near her daughter, in her home, in her bedroom?” Wyatt looks up finally, eyes wide in surprise. Gina laughs. “Yeah. I know about that. I did some research after Amy-dearest let that slip the day you dumped me.” Amy and Wyatt exchange a look. He looks about as angry as she feels. “Angry” didn't begin to cover it. There wasn't a word strong enough for the anger, the rage, the hatred coursing through her body right now. Amy directs a murderous glare at Gina, the voice that emits form her mouth a dark, ominous tone that she hasn't spoken with in over ten years. “Leave. Now.” Wyatt recognizes that voice, the one she used when she was aligned with the psychopath that had kidnapped and brainwashed her, had turned her against everyone she loved. He involuntarily backs away from her a few inches in his chair. She doesn't notice. “I suggest you take me very seriously. I-” “I SAID LEAVE! We'll contact you in a few days.” Gina jumps at Amy's outburst, and a few other diners look towards their table. Amy doesn't notice, but Wyatt does, and he puts a hand on Amy's arm, trying to calm her. “Amy, people are staring.” Amy turns to him and glares, talking through gritted teeth. “I.. don't.. care.” “Gina...” Wyatt looks back towards his ex, his glare almost as intense as Amy's. “You really should go. Now.” “And keep your goddamn mouth shut.” Gina smirks, as if she's won and has the check in her possession already. She gets out of her chair, and slings her purse over her shoulder. “Fine. I'll just be expecting your call in a day or two.” She walks away, as if nothing strange had just gone on at the table. As soon as Gina is gone from the outdoor dining area, the server appears, a bit apprehensively, a weak smile on her face. “Is.... is everything okay here?” Amy is still trying to calm herself down, so Wyatt answers. “It is now. Could we get fresh tea's, please?” The woman notes the watered down glasses, and nods. “Of course. Um... is your party two, now?” Wyatt just nods. “Okay. Just take your time for your order.” The woman walks away, taking the watery tea with her. Amy has been taking slow, deep breaths, with her eyes closed, since Gina walked away, knowing she needed to calm herself down. She couldn't remember the last time she had gotten that full of rage over anything. She can feel the blood pounding in her head, and that her face is flushed. Wyatt still has his hand on her forearm, slowly rubbing up and down in a calming motion. It seems to be helping, it's something to focus on. Just as the server brings the new glasses of tea, Amy feels her blood pressure starting to return to normal, the throbbing in her head going away. She opens her eyes, and sees the server setting the glasses down. Figuring they'd been here long enough without ordering, Amy asks for her usual here without even looking at the menu, a grilled chicken Caesar salad. Wyatt doesn't seem to want to look at it either, and just orders the same. Neither are very hungry anymore, anyway. After the server leaves with their order, Wyatt speaks quietly, trying to sound calm. “Are you really considering paying her?” “I'm not sure we have a choice.” “You can't be serious... ten grand?” “I don't care about the money. It's not like I can't afford it. I don't even care what she says about me. But I am not going to let her spread lies about you, and then drag up shit that happened over ten years ago, that has nothing to do with anything anymore. “It's not like she'd be making that up, Amy. It happened, I can't deny that. And I won't-” “That isn't the point. Think about the kids, Wyatt. Jaina already had to live through that once. Do you want her to have to relive it? She's starting high school next year. The last thing she needs on the first day of school is a campus full of hateful kids calling her father a murderer!” Wyatt's head drops, with a sigh. “I'm sorry... you know I don't believe that. But teenagers are brutal. And she has enough to deal with as it is without some disgusting smear campaign against her parents in the media. And Loki... ” Amy shakes her head, as Wyatt looks back up at her, what she's saying starting to sink in. “Loki doesn't know about any of that. The TV and internet really isn't the way he should find out.” “So we tell him.” “No! You're missing the point. We can't allow her to do this. I don't give any fucks what's out there about me, I'm used to it. But you? No... you're not in the business, you're not in the public eye. You never wanted to be, and I kept it that way. You've more than paid your price for what happened. I am not going to let her drag you through the mud. You're too good for that.” Despite everything her therapist had caused her to think about, if she was really as invested as she thought she was, if he was really as supportive as he claimed he was, if... if... if. Despite all that, she still believed that underneath whatever issues there were between them, he was still a good man, and she did love him. He absolutely did not deserve to be made into a media spectacle. And her kids did not need to be subjected to it. Protecting all three of them from that was worth ten times over what Gina asked for. “Okay... what about this? What if she's still lying? What if it actually is mine, and she's making some crazy play to keep that away from me?” “We make her get the DNA test as a condition of getting the money. I don't think that's the case though. Not after everything I've heard her say. ” “I don't think so, either, not really. Just can't help questioning everything she says anymore.” “Okay. She does the test. It comes back negative, she gets a check. If it comes back as yours... well, we'll cross that bridge if we get to it.” “Okay. I don't suppose there's really anything else we can do.” Amy looks away for a minute, a thought having occurred to her, Dr. Lucio's words encouraging her to ask him point blank about what he really wanted. It seemed odd to her that he would wonder if Gina was double-crossing him about the paternity. Well, if she was going to ask, it was now or never. “You know, if I didn't know any better... I might think you wanted the baby to be yours.” “What? That's ridiculous. Why would you think that?” “Just a feeling I get. You took forever to decide about the abortion money. You didn't want to believe me about what I heard her say on the phone. In fact, I don't think you believed it until I played the audio earlier. Like you told her, you've tried to take her word at every turn. Why else would you do that, if you didn't want to believe her?” “I really thought you knew me better than that.” “I do know you. That's why I thought this in the first place. You weren't around when Jaina was a baby, and-” Amy cuts off her own words, not sure how to even complete the thought. Wyatt looks at her across the table as if he isn't sure he knows her. “You can't seriously believe that.” “I don't know what to believe.” “Me, Amy. You believe me.” He has one last sip of his tea, and wipes the moisture from the glass off of his hands, then sits back from the table. “I'm leaving, I'm done with this. I need to get ready to go out of town, anyway. I have to go to Shreveport and help out at the new gym location.” Amy sighs. She wasn't even going to try to get him to stay; she had enough of this conversation, too. “For how long?” “Wednesday, probably.” Hm. Which meant that he wasn't coming with her to Hartford for her rematch against Shilo. Not that she'd asked, or even expected it. Wyatt starts to get up. “Wait, what about your order?” Having taken a step away already, he turns back with a shrug. “Just take it home.” Without any other words, no goodbye or anything, he leaves. Amy watches him walk out, shaking her head to herself, wondering if she was wrong and he was insulted, or if she was right and he couldn't handle it. The server comes back with the orders a minute later, and looks a bit confused and concerned. Amy is certain that the redness of her eyes from her strain to keep from crying in public is the cause of that look from the woman. “Ma'am? “I'm sorry.. can I get these to go? My... he had to go. Emergency phone call.” The server picks the plates up again and nods, somewhat sympathetically. “Sure. I'll just box them up for you.” As the server walks away, Amy leans her head into her hands, covering her face. She had considered asking him to go to Hartford with her, just to see what the answer would be. But she didn't have to, he already had an excuse. Last week it was meetings at the gym. This week it was he had to travel. Who's job was interfering with what, now? [align=center]* * * * *[/align] [align=right]May 19th Entry 13 1:27 PM Hartford, CT[/align] So I'm not worthy of beating? Really, Shilo? Or, is it that you know you can't beat me, so you thought you'd take the easy way out – again – and try to make yourself look like a badass in the process? I know which option I'd put my money on. ---------- I guess I should have seen it coming. Shilo did say in his promo video that he was going to pull that chair out again. I guess I didn't think he was actually that stupid. Not after I called him out last week for the exact same thing, showing that he thinks he can't beat me by trying to cheat. But rather than try to prove me wrong, he just did exactly the same thing. I guess he thought if he was going to lose, it might as well be on his terms. Shilo thinks he's making a point, making a statement about being willing to do anything to win the battle royal, grab that Flame. But I have news for Shilo. You can't win a battle royal with a chair shot. And you can't make anyone believe you're a threat by taking the cheap way out of a match. Shilo would have gained a lot more ground by staying the course and actually fighting me, than he did by bruising the fuck out of my back. But, fine. If that's the way he wants to play this, more power to him. I didn't need a steel chair to the back to tell me there's a target there. I've had a target on my back in SCW almost since I walked in the door. One month in I was given a shot at the Adrenaline Championship, and people started taking notice, asking questions. Who was this red-headed veteran and why is she getting these opportunities so soon after signing here? I think I've shown why since then. I don't have as impressive a record as say... Kelcey Wallace, or Regan Street, or Syren. But I do have respect for this business, and I stand for the integrity of this sport, and I give everything I have every time I set foot into that ring. Some nights my everything is more than other nights, but every time the bell rings, whatever is in my tank, I leave it out there in the ring. I don't give up, I don't take shortcuts, and I don't demand things I don't deserve. This is why I have a target on my back. If it was big before, it's blinking neon now, since I've been the SCW World Champion. A lot of people in this company don't like the fact that I came here and broke through to the main event so easily. More than a few men and women have stood in the ring and spoke on camera and posted on Twitter, complaining, bitching, whining about the fact that people newer to SCW are passing them up, getting main event matches and title shots, and that we don't deserve it, because they've been here longer. They've put in the work here, and they're owed the same matches and title shots as the people who are getting them. People like me. That is the target I wear, my so-called scarlet letter is an I, for Interloper. I've been here for over a year now, but compared to a vast majority of this roster, I am still a relative newcomer. In the eyes of a lot of people, I shouldn't be in the position I'm in. I might have eleven years of experience and over a half-dozen title reigns, but most of it wasn't here. It doesn't count. Only what was done here, counts here. Blah blah blah. Obviously that isn't true, because I made it to the top of this company in less than a year anyway. Not because of some misguided sense of seniority. Not because the Board threw me a bone like some good-service, or lifetime-achievement award. But because I prove, every time I walk through the curtain that this isn't just a job for me. This is my life. I live, breathe, sweat, and bleed for this. And I have one of the ugliest, blue and purple bruises I've ever seen on my shoulder blade today because someone who thinks it's acceptable to take shortcuts and make this sport that I dedicate everything to into a joke, smacked me with a chair last night just so he wouldn't have to take a real loss to me. And then brushed it off by saying he was bored. That's insulting as fuck, and I'm not going to stand for that. There has been a recent wave of people here in SCW lately who are claiming they are going to cleanse this company. Bring honor back. Take out the people who denigrate and drag down the integrity of this business for the rest of us. You can go ahead and add my name to that list. This doesn't mean I'm going to join forces with the people who have made this their mission. Shaun Cruze and AJ Helms have their team going, and they have a game plan. That's fine. Konrad Raab seems to have a good head on his shoulders, calling out a few people for their actions, including Shilo for what he did to me. And even though some people seem to have misinterpreted his words, even David Miller has taken up this cause in his own way, and I get where he's coming from, even if his methods are a little... unorthodox. Dawn Lohan is looking for answers and justice for her assault weeks ago. She's a part of this too, attacks like what happened to her just shouldn't happen. People like Dawn's unknown assailant, and Monarchy, and Red Rayne, and Shilo, and Jake Starr and Greg Cherry... the actions of those people are what gives this business a bad name. And one by one, those of us who care about what we do, who live for this every day, who care about how we are perceived as a whole rather than only about ourselves, we are going to restore everything that's good and honorable about this company. I haven't been here as long as most of you, but that doesn't matter to me. I've made friends here, I've gained fans here, I've held this company's top championship and I will do whatever it takes to help rid this place of injustice and disrespect. We don't need to form a super group to restore honor and integrity to this company and to the business. In fact, our mission works better if we take this on individually. We chip away at the monster form all sides, a sort of death by a thousand cuts. If anyone wants to prove they're better than me, that they deserve the position I'm in more than they do... fight me. Don't swing chairs at me, like Shilo. Don't throw liquor in my face and cheap shot me when I'm down, and make false KO claims, like Monarchy. Don't insult my intelligence by pretending I wasn't about to tap your ass out, like – oh, wait... I'm not supposed to mention that anymore. My mistake. Each and every one of the people I've mentioned here so far are going to meet in the ring in Toronto next weekend, and all of us, a total of 40 people, are going to bring their best to the ring and try outlast the other 39, and be the one left standing, the one who gets to go to Rise to Greatness and compete in the main event. I can tell you right now that taking shortcuts, cheap shots, and copping out won't win that match for you. The only way you can win is by throwing people over the top rope before they can toss you over first. SCW needs a good cleansing. The people who care about this company need to come together in that battle royal, and individually ensure that no one unworthy, no one who disrespects this business, or the integrity of the sport, or the championship we are all fighting for a chance to fight for... is the last one standing at the end of that match. We need to put them on notice that we aren't going to stand for their tactics anymore. The World Championship, and this company deserve better than that. It deserves someone who will grab that Flame, and carry it with pride, keeping it lit and raised up as a beacon of light for everything this business should represent. Honor. Integrity. Spirit of competition. Greatness. Is anyone else going to rise with me? [align=right]~ FlameHolder Amy Chastaine[/align] ---------------------- OOC: Usual code edits. |
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| The Matt | May 26 2016, 06:20 AM Post #8 |
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Advanced Member
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Here's my Kayla effort. http://joneskayla.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-nightmare.html |
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| Team Desire | May 26 2016, 10:04 PM Post #9 |
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SCW's Queen of Queens/The Goddess of Desire
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[align=center] SCW Goddess | Katie Steward | "Her Communion" [/align]It's 1 of 2 for THotF and hopefully something terrifying. |
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| Miller | May 27 2016, 01:45 AM Post #10 |
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Advanced Member
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OOC: 1 of what will hopefully be 2. Will get the second one up tomorrow night if my train of thought co-operates. Looking to reveal a lot of the secrets Miller has been keeping the past five years - tying into why his mind hasn't been wholly on SCW as of late, and what he's been doing outside the ring. ============================================= Taking Hold of the Flame. A night where 30.. or in this case, 40 of the greatest talents known to the industry of competitive sports come together in one giant clusterfuck of a match. No rules outside elimination conditions. No time limit. No alliances or allegiances. No tag teams or stable mates.. just one against all.. until the dust settles, and a singular soul stands triumphant over the world. Obviously, being one of the crown jewels of SCW.. the Flame is no stranger to me. Despite my distaste for group matches and survival stipulations, I’ve found myself running through that curtain no less than four times in the past. Each time due to different motivations. But always with the same goal. To prove what I’ve been saying for the past decade is more than some catchy line for the merchandise. It’s more than a gimmick, or a catchphrase. It’s more than just an overblown ego. How long have I stood in the center of that ring, or in front of a camera, or over the body of a broken opponent and stated time and again that I am the best there is at what I do?.. how long?.. how many times?.. personally, I’m beginning to lose count. And what’s more.. or worse.. I’m beginning to lose faith. Not so much in myself. I know what I’m capable of. I always have.. it’s why I have no fear, no hesitation when it comes to stepping between those ropes. Doesn’t matter who, and doesn’t matter how many.. it won’t be enough. It’s never enough to keep me down. No. I’m losing faith in the idea that sooner or later.. they’ll get it. Sooner or later, people will shut up and pay attention when I tell them I’m the best. I don’t know what else it’ll take. I’ve already beaten World Champions.. Living Legends.. Hall of Famers.. and I’m starting to run out of bodies to bury. To be honest.. it’s becoming somewhat frustrating.. and I’m tired of having to repeat myself. But.. here I stand, about to enter the fray for the fifth.. and possibly final time. Why do I say final?.. because after the night of the 29th, I don’t plan on having anything left to prove. Not to myself. Not to the doubters who’ve plagued and hounded and followed me through the years like circling vultures waiting to feast. And least of all, to each and every man, woman or thing that dares to enter my ring. Oh, and make no mistake about it.. THAT.. is MY ring. It always has been, and always will be. I might have to share it once in awhile, and I might dishonor it in defeat on occasion … but at the end of the day, when all is said and done, it’s my blood, my sweat that’s been soaked into that canvas more than anybody else in SCW history... Just out of curiosity.. did you hear that, AJ? My blood. My sweat. My tears. … more than anyone else. You seem to be infatuated with this idea that I’ve turned my back on this company. That I’ve made promises to the fans, the business.. only to turn around and rip them apart. If you weren’t so naive and eager to make yourself out to be more than you are, maybe you’d realize just how much of a fallacy that is. I’ve done nothing but stand for this company since I walked through those doors a decade ago. I can still remember being the reckless upstart you are now … only instead of washed-out geriatrics like Cherry and Starr … I was getting in the face of men like Xander Valentine, Damian Angel and Caleb Andrews. I was standing my ground, and holding my own against the Devil, Himself … and the only man on earth that devil ever feared. Was I triumphant? … no. I found myself beaten down time, and time and time again … only to force myself back up and strike back, no matter the cost or outcome. Unlike you, though, AJ, it wasn’t out of some diluted sense of ‘honor’.. and it wasn’t because I could. I did it because I am, and have always been … the manifestation of what SCW stood for. What it was founded on back in the early ‘00s, and what it still stands for today, despite those eager to destroy it. All I hear out of that ever-flapping mouth of yours is how this company has been poisoned, tainted, ruined by people like the Monarchy or Red Rayne.. or even me. All the ‘honor’ and ‘competition’ has been sucked out, leaving an empty shell behind. But, that’s where that naivety of yours comes out, AJ … leaving you sounding like a spoiled little shit, kicking and screaming as loud and as hard as you can just to make sure everyone pays attention and tells you what a good boy you are. SCW stands for Supreme Championship Wrestling, Helms … and yes, I’m sure you knew that … or at least I hope you did. I say that aloud because for the longest time it was also known as the “Land of Supreme,” with one sole purpose: To gather and showcase the best pieces of God-given talent from around the world. Didn’t matter what kind of background you came from – boxing, wrestling, mixed martial arts, catch wrestling, submissions wrestling. And they came. They came in droves over the years. Names like Kayl, Desoubrais, Valentine, Cherry, Angel, Savior, Harris, Hudson, Winters, Evans and Griffin all came. Followed by Helms, Winchester, Foxx, Kinney, Knight, Marshall, Street, Starr and Chastaine. The best in the business, all congregated under a single banner, representing a company that honored one thing, and one alone above all: Competition. Your favorite word, right, AJ? The one you seem to think I’ve forgotten the meaning of, even though it’s all I’ve ever known for the last twenty years of my life. It didn’t matter who, and it didn’t matter when … my music played, and I walked down to meet whatever challenge was set before me. No, I wasn’t the prettiest wrestler. I don’t fly through the air, and I don’t roll around on the ground in a dozen different positions. That’s not who I am. Who I am … what I am… is a fighter, AJ. First and foremost, now and forever. But what that means, is I have no issues getting my hands dirty if I have to. You even said it yourself … you wanted to see “The Assassin” back in SCW. Well, here I am, little man… though you should really be careful what you wish for. Maybe you only knew the name by reputation. Or maybe dear old daddy has been spinning yarns about me… either way, I really don’t think you understand what it is I do. I don’t restrict myself with ‘boundaries,’ AJ. I don’t hold myself to any kind of code or creed, other than making certain that when I stand toe to toe with someone … when I look an opponent in the eyes, and hear that bell echo … that when all is said and done, by any means necessary … I will be the one left standing in the end … You seem to think that lessens my dedication to this business … but ask yourself something, Helms … what ‘lack of dedication’ does it take to walk through the same curtain, down the same ramp… to the same ring for ten years straight? What kind of dedication does it take to fight through three broken necks, countless concussions and a shattered kneecap? What kind of dedication does it take to sacrifice EVERYTHING you have … ever COULD have had … all for this business? … the kind that I personify, AJ … The kind that will carry me through that curtain yet again, just as it has for the last ten years … in over a hundred and fifty matches … because whether you choose to believe it, or refuse to accept the cold truth when you hear it … [align=center] I AM the best there is at what I do. I AM the toughest bastard in this business. I AM the walking manifestation of competition. … and after Sunday night … I WILL be the one holding the Flame. ==========[/align] 05.16.2016 07:13PM PST Santa Ana, CA Miller’s mind was still a hodgepodge at the very least by the time he stepped out of the connecting tunnel into the John Wayne arrivals terminal. The conversation on the plane.. or whatever you called a talk over Twitter.. had done nothing to ease his mind about the current events. Not in SCW, not at home.. not at all, really. But, he couldn’t blame her for that. Not when she had her own shit to handle even without having to help to shoulder his at every turn. Either way.. sleep had been a luxury he couldn’t afford throughout the flight, and his eyes were reminding him of that now. They felt raw, crusted and sore from the bright lights of the building. Squinting some to relieve the irritation, he made his way to one of the benches. Leaving the duffel by his feet, he fished his phone out once again, remembering the two calls from Mike that needed returning. There was also a new notification via Twitter.. from James Evans of all people. Call it ironic fate, or just a shitty little coincidence, but the both of them had recently signed contracts with the VWA.. a semi-/-pseudo affiliate of the company, thanks to Amy and Bree’s recent signings. It came as something of a shock when he noticed names that he remembered from a few years back. People like Brett Sinclaire and Lynn Brewster. Both had made attempts in SCW at one point.. only to shrink back to their more familiar stomping grounds. Now, down the road.. SCW was the one invading VWA. Highlighting the notice, he opened the app to check the post.. feeling the scoffing chuckle crawling up to escape his throat. [align=center] <@SCWJamesEvans: @SCWDavidMiller @VWAOfficial: Don’t go letting your mouth write checks your ass can’t cash.> [/align] Seriously? Evans was one to talk about being overdrawn as of late. He’d been the amazing vanishing man for the better part of the year up until recently, and ever since he turned back up at Supreme Saturday, his media posts had read more like the ramblings of a madman than any kind of potential threat. Truth be told, Miller was still shocked the son of a bitch had signed up for the royal.. well, maybe not too shocked. Evans and he had more similarities than he was comfortable admitting to. They both had no fear running their mouths, or just popping off whenever they felt like it. Neither of them had the brains to back down from a challenge, even when it was obvious they were outclassed to the point of embarrassment. Recently, Evans had even taking to mimicking Miller’s style, trying to shape himself into some kind of one-man submission machine. Still, there was one defining factor that continued to separate them: That being mental status. Granted, both of them had earned their share of labels over the years, depending on the various mindsets they’d gone through, but where Miller had been seen as more of a “loose cannon” or just “reckless,” Evans had been hovering at the edge of sheer insanity. Explosive outbursts. Rampant drug addiction. And a dedication to the business that fluctuated like a morning tide. Still.. all that aside, Evans had found more success through his madness than Miller had.. a fact that still stuck in his craw like a bone shard, constantly needling him now matter how hard he tried to ignore it. As countless others, and Miller, himself, had pointed out.. the so-called “Assassin” had yet to stand in the ring with a single legitimate title around his waist. Not for lack of trying, either. He’d had his opportunities, same as anyone else. Facing Thomas Valentine for the United States Championship. The recent elimination match at Retribution for the Television Championship. There were even times he’d been approached for runs at the Tag Team Championship.. only for his mistrust to quash the idea outright. Still.. Evans seemed more than comfortable making comments online.. but a little less confident doing it face to face. That was another difference between them. James like to talked. He loved running his mouth, looking to get under the skin of anyone and everyone.. much like his ‘mentor,’ Josh Hudson. But, most of the time, talk is where it both started and stopped. When the time came to knuckle up and settle things face to face.. Evans always seemed to slip into the shadows… Luckily, there was no hiding from the Flame. Sooner or later, Evans’ number would be called, and he’d be forced to run down the ramp and get in the ring.. where Miller would be waiting. If nothing else, he could make sure the little shit found himself dumped over the rope and back under whatever rock he kept retreating to. Just the idea had the faintest of smiles melting over his face. Looking back to the twitter post, he sent a quick retort and closed the app, done with Evans for now. Thinking about Evans and the royal turned his thoughts to SCW.. leading him to bring up the mobile app out of curiosity. Turnout for the match was already underway. Both Starr and Kayla Jones had uploaded videos, along with Chastaine.. who rightfully seemed a little more focused on Shilo than the Flame. She brought up the battle royal a few times, but, for the most part, her anger was more than a little focused. Shilo. Kelcey. Regan. Pretty much anyone who’d ruffled the little red hen’s feathers as late.. a list that seemed to be growing every week, much to his own personal amusement. Anyone who didn’t think the New Orleans native was just a little on the cute side when she got heated up was obviously a blind man … In Miller’s own experience, though.. focusing on one specific individual, or even a small handful was a better strategy than looking to stand up against thirty-nine people. He’d seen plenty make that mistake in the past and wind up paying for it when the ring got too crowded.. too chaotic. Where, he couldn’t remember, but he’d heard someone compare it to a zombie apocalypse once. A few stragglers here and there won’t be trouble, but once the herd swells and things lose all control.. that’s when you’re in the worst danger. You only have two eyes.. and in a situation like that, two just ain’t enough. Not that he could claim to have the answer.. every time he’d stepped into that ring, he’d found himself dumped to the floor before the real battle even started. Never Top 5. Never Top 10.. never even breaking the Top 20.. if anything, it seemed like the Flame was his kryptonite. The one challenge he could face time and time again, with no chance of ever overcoming the odds. Even if that was the case, though.. it wouldn’t stop him. Nothing would. If need be, he’d stand in the center of that ring for another ten years, if that’s what it took to get his shot. Not necessarily at titles or accolades.. but at proving that ‘07, ‘08 and ‘09 weren’t just flukes. That it wasn’t just a case of him being a lucky guy. In the right place.. at the right time… Bringing a hand up to sweep and scrub at his face, feeling the stick and prick of the week-old stubble along his jaw, he tried to push the thought aside.. if only for now. The Flame was still more than a week away. Before that, he had AJ to deal with in Ottawa, then a quick appearance for VWA at Pandora’s Box.. on top of whatever the hell was happening back at home … Thoughts of the program snapped his attention back to the phone.. his thumb quickly bringing up the listing of missed calls, finding the two from Michael near the top. Both attempts had come from the main office number. Not that strange, seeing as Mike rarely left the grounds. Even less these days, since the ever-growing crowd of protesters was starting to make the boys a little anxious. Whatever the fuck Roth was regurgitating for the city council, it must be damned good, ‘cause it was working. Over the last month, alone, they’d had to fight off no less than a dozen different negligence charges. Scrolling through his contact list, he ignored the office phone and dialed Mike’s personal cell. The time stamp at the top of the phone read around 8pm.. right about the time he’d be locking up to head home. Leaning back against the back of the bench, he let his head rest against the top of the seat, eyes falling shut as the line buzzed rhythmically on the other end … Eventually, the sharp click of the line opening cut the pattern, followed by a gruff, but warm voice - “Shit, and here I was thinking that kick’d gone and knocked your brains out the side of your head. You forget how to dial a phone number, kid?” Despite himself, Miller smiled. - “Fuck you, too, Pops. Had a lot of shit on my mind, alright?” - Shaking his head a bit, he gave a low chuckle. - “But no, for your information, the kick sure as hell didn’t help. I’ll pay him back, though. Soon as we get to Toronto. Or, maybe Christmas comes early and he gets a nice present in Ottawa.. I haven’t decided yet. Either way, that’s for later. Bigger fish to fry before I worry about Jake.. assuming he doesn’t take himself out before then.. or Cruze doesn’t get to him.. or they don’t get to each other. I don’t know.. I don’t really care, either, to be honest with you.” “Yeah. You sound like someone who doesn’t care.” - The sound of groaning leather, probably as the old man settled back in his chair. - “Didn’t expect you to be getting in this late. Couple of the kids were getting worried. They’ve been missing you the last few weeks. You get delayed up there or something?” “No, no.. landed about a half-hour ago.. just.. sat down to check messages and my mind wound up taking a couple of detours. I meant to call you first thing. Saw the two notifications while we were in the air. I’m fine. I should be there in about an hour, depending how the traffic goes. I’ll see ‘em all at the morning roll call.” - Opening his eyes, Miller slowly leaned forward, bracing his free arm across his thighs. - “I saw the two messages you left.. is everything OK over there?” Silence for the first few seconds, before Mike gave a slow sigh in response. - “Define ‘OK’.. things are staring to take one hell of a nosedive. The crowd out front just keeps getting bigger every week. It was bad enough just having Roth and his cronies out there making a racket.. but ever since Chris got pinched for that hand-off, the media’s been showing up, too.” “Oh, for fuck’s sake..” - Gritting his teeth to keep from firing off a few more choice words, Miller just bowed his head, nostrils flaring as he pulled ever-deepening breaths into his lungs. Shaking his head, he finally started muttering under his breath. - “I swear to God, Mike, if I ever see a chance to get my hands around his fucking neck, I’ll--” Mike cut him off. - “You’ll change your mind.” - As quick as the warm undertone had arrived, it disappeared, replaced by the low, commanding tone of a career Marine. There was no yelling, no raising of voices.. only a cold, stone-steady voice that brooked no arguments from anyone. - “You know why he’s doing it. And in his position, you’d be the exact same way.” Not daring to speak, Miller just listened, as he was expected to. “Put yourself in his position. Think about what that man went through.. arguably because of us..” - A slight pause, before Mike’s voice dropped a bit, the strength waning in the face of a painful truth. - “Because of me. If I hadn’t been so ready to trust every kid they sent us.. maybe I would have caught it. Maybe I’d have seen some kind of tell or tip-off.” - The line went quiet for a long while.. before Mike’s voice returned, still remorseful. - “But.. I didn’t. And because of it, that man lost his daughter.. in the most vile way possible. What if you were him, David?..what if the son of a bitch had gotten Naomi?” ….. A sudden clatter snapped Miller out of the dazed zone he’d slipped into.. causing him to look down and see the dark screen of the phone staring up at him from the bench. One blink. Two. Then more in rapid succession. Almost immediately, his mind flashed with a hundred different memories. Golden hazel eyes. Long, black silken hair. Chubby cheeks pulled back in the purest of grins, staring up at him from where she hugged tight to his leg.. her mouth silently opening to speak --- The phone vibrated. The opening chords to the ‘Friday the 13th” theme following soon after. He noticed the ID citing Mike as the caller, but he already knew that. Slowly reaching for the phone, he took a second to calm his stuttered breathing … Mike’s voice came the instant Miller answered the call. - “Thought that might get your attention.” Dumbly, Miller just shook his head. - “Mike, come on, man.. that’s not even fucking CLOSE to funny.. the hell were you thinking bringing her into this?!” - Shock melted under the heat of a rising ire, his blood beginning to thicken just a little … “Because the point still stands, David, that’s why. Roth’s got a damned good reason for being like this.. if I went through what he did, I can’t say I’d be thinking straight, either.. let alone anxious to see the place that let my daughter’s killer loose taking on even more potential rapists or murderers.” - Eventually, some of the hardness ebbed from the older man’s tone, though the command was still more than evident. - “Just get back here. We’ll talk about how to tackle this in the morning.” “Yes, Sir.” - Miller heard the words leave him without even fully realizing he’d said them. Pulling the phone away from his ear, he disconnected and set the Samsung on the seat beside him.. slowly leaning forward to brace his arms to his thighs … ….. Naomi ….. how long had it been since he’d allowed that name to enter his thoughts?.. how long since he’d steeled himself against that particular pain? .. eyes closing slowly, he felt, and immediately rebelled against the salty sting at the corners.. the welling drops soon overcoming his feeble defenses, as the thick drops rolled silently down his cheeks. The thought occurred to reach up and brush them away, but he simply sat, head bowed under the weight of the ghosts now taking shape in the back of his mind. A woman of lithe and supple build, her caramel eyes watching him with as much love and strength.. as fear.. even hatred. In equal measure they seemed to radiate from the specter’s unblinking stare. At her side, a small girl appeared.. maybe eight? .. nine? .. he couldn’t really tell.. all he knew what that the resemblance could never be ignored or mistaken.. but the similarities were not with the woman. From behind dark brunette hair, eyes of the truest jade green watched him, uncertain, unsure.. her lips beginning to open, to form words.. but all that emerged was a high-pitched scream! .. all at once, his vision seemed to distort like static .. before brief flash of a bloodied face appeared before his eyes .. caramel-colored pools wide and blood-shot, the accusation clear as a dripping finger thrust into his face! [align=center] Monster! [/align] |
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| Emerge | May 27 2016, 02:28 AM Post #11 |
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Advanced Member
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Number One from me...lot's of fun writing this and hope it shows. Good luck folks Taking Hold of the Flame #1 |
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| Winter_Crystal | May 27 2016, 09:41 AM Post #12 |
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The Snow Queen
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The following occurs at a number of different times (flashbacks all have date indicated). Main story occurs days after 4Saken’s match with Dark Fantasy. Promo occurs shortly thereafter (Before the events of latest Breakdown).. [align=center] [/align][align=center]Heir to the Throne “Different Points of View”[/align] “I’ve never done anything like this before.” Selena whispered quietly as she drove the car down the streets of New York – busy as they were. Her eyes spotted the numerous banners hanging on the streets lights, promoting one of the many latest “Broadway shows”. They were rather far from Broadway, but still, the hype of New York City was not something that could be contained just to the region of said city. It was partly why Selena had chosen the state as a permanent place of residence. There was always something to do. Something to observe – something to learn. It was the same mentality Selena saw in wrestling career. Where many superstars across the Triad would have matches that they viewed as “having no point”, Selena always looked for the opportunity in everything. That being said, she was finding it difficult to see the positive nature of this endeavour. “I think it’s for the best.” Chimed in Selena’s wife, Deanna Frost. “Just try to keep an open mind.” Pulling her red-hair back behind her shoulder, the pregnant Deanna then adjusted her black and white thick striped shirt over her torso, the lower part of the shirt covering part of the black leggings she wore. “That’s what worries. I agree us talking about things is important.” Selena agreed whole-heartedly. “That’s not what worries me and you know it.” Deanna sighed before gently, so as not to distract Selena as the Snow Queen drove the car, placed her hand on Selena’s shoulder. “Selena.” “Hmm?” Selena hummed, not moving her eyes from the road as she stopped at a set of lights. “I need you to trust me.” “I DO trust you.” Selena said. “I’m just…look it’s different for me, okay?” She said, quickly throwing a glance to her wife. “It’s one thing to be open with you – even in discussions with someone, I can be open. But a hypnotherapist?” “I researched all possible sources.” Deanna said. “And Doctor Craven was one of the best listed.” “Deanna, it’s hypnotherapy. It’s not even a 100% legitimately considered-” Deanna half-scoffed at those words. “I can’t believe the woman that screams ‘Believe it’ – who had a child made of snow-“ “Don’t throw that at me.” Selena shot back. “I believe in many things – miraculous things, but the idea of someone –“ “But you don’t believe in hypnosis?” “Of course I do.” Selena said, surprising her wife. “I’ve seen things that most have never seen or will ever see, Deanna. But it’s the idea of me being so exposed In front of someone I do not know – it terrifies me. At least if I expose myself with my words-“. Selena paused at that. She had been a victim of that too many times to count, times where she was just being friendly or supportive or just speaking her mind – the SCW roster had then taken her words and done all they could to drag her through the mind. Just recently, Silas Mason, the dreaded creator of Silas’ World had re-emerged from hiding and appeared on the UWA show Outbreak. In an off the cuff response, meant to show that Selena was not intimidated by anyone in UWA, the Snow Queen had made a joke about Silas’ facial hair. Immediately, Ace Marshall had posted on Twitter, questioned Selena as a friend and person due to Silas’ past actions. Sadly, this wasn’t the first time such things had occurred from so little of an action. Befriending the new tag-team Money in the Bank, speaking her mind at Best of the Best (which had lead to all the rough patches she was still dealing with with Regan Street), the list was rather long and how easily and often the roster seemed to jump on the Snow Queen, questioning her credibility and morals. “If I expose myself like that, at least I am in control.” Selena finished her train of thought. “I can deal with it.” “Selena, it’s not like in the movies. You’re not going to be knocked out or something. You’re going to be…” Deanna tried to explain. “Guided – as if through a journey. Plus, Craven is a psychiatrist as well so we can just talk to her if you’re not willing.” “Why don’t you be hypnotized?” Selena asked as she turned a corner, pulling into a rather pleasant looking neighbourhood of buildings. The sun was a beautiful, bright blue yet the Snow Queen could see the strong wind blowing the tree-branches in a wave-like fashion. “Because this isn’t about me.” Deanna said, rubbing her belly. “You know that.” Selena took a deep breath before nodding her head. It had been a scary week for the Frosts. After learning of the incident between Selena and her ex-girlfriend Dawn Lohan in Las Vegas several months ago, Deanna had opted to take some time away from her wife. Sadly, this was not meant to be, as the stress from the Incident and driving at night triggered phantom-contractions within the red-haired woman. In a panic, Deanna had driven herself to the hospital to be checked out and immediately asked the nurses to call Selena. Selena had been there immediately, but a heart-to-heart between Dawn and Deanna had also followed in the hospital, leaving Deanna and Selena in a rather…delicate…situation. “I know you’re mad at you me.” Selena said. “You’re still mad, I mean.” “I’m not mad.” Deanna said softly, her hands on her stomach. “I’m worried. What you’re doing… Going through hoops for people – constantly stressed about defending your name and honour, hiding things from me – none of this is healthy.” “I know and I’m trying to change that-“ “When was the last time you had a good night’s rest, Selena?” Deanna piped in quickly, causing Selena’s jaw to clench shut. She knew Deanna would not like the answer. “Not for awhile.” Selena finally replied. “Nightmares right?” Selena nodded. “See? That’s not healthy.” Deanna concluded. “You promised me in the hospital you would give this a try. That you are going to try and be healthier for the baby.” “And I am going to.” Selena sighed. “I just don’t like this. It sounds so invasive.” There was a brief pause as Selena pulled their dark-blue Toyota van (they were going to have a baby soon, a bigger vehicle was needed) to the side as Selena spotted the address Deanna had told her about – turning off her GPS as she turned the car off. She didn’t leave the car, neither did Deanna. Instead, the two women stared at the red-brick of the house that stood behind the large lawn sign of green and gold trim that said “Dr. Isabelle Craven – psychiatrist, hypnotherapist”. “You know-“ Deanna suddenly said, breaking the silence. “I actually tried hypnotherapy.” Selena half-laughed at the notion. “You? Really?” Deanna nodded. “Back when I was in public school-“ “I thought you were home-schooled with one-on-one tutors.” “A few weeks before that.” Deanna corrected. “I was at recess and… And I had just told Sara Greenland that I liked her.” “You liked her? How old were you?” Selena asked in surprise. “It was childish crush, gimme a break.” Deanna shrugged. “Anyway, Sara told everyone so that when the time came for recess later that day, everyone was singing-“ “Let me guess.” Selena chimed in with a song. “Deanna and Sara, sitting in the tree – K-I-S-S-I-N-“ “Yeah, pretty much.” Deanna said shyly. “Problem is, after the singing, the…ummm…the Catholic kids found me…” Awkwardly, Deanna run a hand through her hair. “They chased me across the playground, flinging rocks at me.” Despite it happening years ago, part of Selena wanted to find those people that had hurt her wife and scare them like she had in her years of self-isolation in Nome, scaring off the boys by being “the Snow Queen”/”The Crazy Miner’s Daughter”. “The principal came out, saw everything, and pulled me into his office.” Deanna continued. “Well, that’s something.” “No, it isn’t.” Deanna replied. “Because once word spread around that I liked girls, the town was in an uproar. Small town – very religious.” Deanna lowered her head. “Pressured by the town to do something – the principal gave me two option. Either, I’d be relocated to a new school that would, quote ‘solve my problem’, or he would bring in a counsellor to talk me through it.” “I’m sorry.” Selena said. She hated the idea of Deanna's identity being regarded as a disease. Partly, she could understand it – she still dealt with the one liner jokes about her nickname, her beliefs, her friendships – everything about her was constantly under a microscope by the roster of SCW, IWC and UWA. Even her own marriage, which was loved by the SCW Universe, was the subject of several insults by bitter superstars. “I didn’t tell anyone about it and chose the counsellor. A few days later, I was called out of class and brought to the principal’s office, where I met him. He was a hypnotherapist too. Apparently, the principal was hoping he could have the doctor “Fix me”.” Deanna laughed at that. “Sounds so stupid now.” “No.” Selena countered. “It’s sad. Sad that they couldn’t see you for the amazing person you are. That they treated you like you had some disease.” One of the reasons Selena hated that concept was that, for so long, she had been the same way. When she was just discovering who she was – her gender identity – she had rejected it. Fought it. Like other small town communities that were heavy in religion, Selena had been raised that homosexuality was a sin in the eyes of God. While she had taught herself out of that in the years to follow, accepting that she was bi-sexual in a homosexual relationship had been one of the hardest challenges in her life. She hated that she had been so narrow-minded and judgmental. Deanna turned her head to regard her wife. Neither said anything for a moment. “So.” Selena said at long last. “What happened?” “The doctor demanded the principal leave the room. I remember being so scared. I had no idea what he was going to do.” “Did he…” Selena’s voice trailed off. Deanna shook her head. “No.” She said. “He actually spoke to me about who I was and what I was feeling. Turns out he was in the same boat I was.” “He was?” “Yep.” Deanna smiled with a shrug. “We talked for half-an-hour about my identity and what I needed to do. The importance of accepting myself for that. We then just talked about me for a little while. I told him of my fear of heights-“ “Fear of heights?” Selena interjected in confusion. “You’re not afraid of heights. I proposed to you on the top of the Eiffel Tower.” Deanna smiled playfully. “I had to say I was ‘fixed’ somehow, remember?” She said with a laugh. “The doctor cured me of my fear of heights through hypnosis, told me to tell my sister of what had happened, and that was that.” “You were cured with hypnotherapy?” Deanna nodded. “Wow.” Selena remarked. “Shortly thereafter, I was pulled from school. Once Amy found out what the principal had tried to do – well, she went into fully crazy-mode.” Looking out her window, Selena saw the building that Deanna was asking her to enter for the sake of Selena’s health and their marriage. “You’ll do that if this doc tries anything?” Selena asked, needing to be sure. “Oh no.” Deanna grinned mischievously. “I’ll go full PREGNANT-CRAZY MODE!”. Selena laughed at that, imaging, for some reason, a sixty foot tall, pregnant Deanna stomping around Tokyo like Godzilla! “Alright.” She finally said, opening the car door and exiting the vehicle. Running over to the other side, the former Adrenaline champion opened the door to help Deanna out. The younger Mrs. Frost stumbled a bit, her arms grasping Selena’s bare ones for balance. Selena had chosen to wear a simple black t-shirt and blue jeans. Her white sneakers were a stark contract to Deanna’s slip on ‘shoe-slippers’. As always, Selena kept her hair in her trademark braid. “You oka-“ Selena tried but instantly stumbled back, losing her footing a little as she felt a wave of dizziness hit her. Quickly, she grounded herself but planting her feet firmly to the ground before shaking her head in an attempt to clear the cobwebs. “Selena?” “I’m fine.” Selena smiled. “Just the heat.” Deanna nodded. It had been a rather muggy week in New York, the temperature rising and humidity going right up along with it to match with the arrival of Spring. Deanna knew her wife – remembered what hot temperature did to her. “I’m sure the inside has air-conditioning.” Deanna whispered. “I hope so.” Selena stated, regaining her senses with a deep breath. Everything set, the pair followed the instructions that were taped on the door and entered, making their way through a hallway and into a small, waiting room. It was clear that this woman was a “private practice” kind of doctor. The whole inside of the building had a rather “I live right upstairs” kind of feel to it, with everything feeling rather crammed close together. The two women stepped quietly down the hall they were in until they saw a door on the left hand side. It looked like an office or some kind of sitting room, complete with desk and chairs. “Hello.” Came the voice of a young man who sat at the desk as he saw the two ladies. He wore a dress-shirt and tie and Selena was forced to ask how he wasn’t melting with such layers of clothes. Of course, that was until she felt the cold breeze of the AC. Taking a deep breath in relief, the Snow Queen felt the coolness hit her, soaking into her bones and giving her more energy instantly. “Hi.” Deanna answered to the boy before shuffling to where the man sat. “Name?” “Frosts for a 1:45pm appointment with Dr. Craven?” Deanna replied, twisting her eyes up as she tried to recall the appointment slot. The young boy nodded before handing a pair of forms to Deanna. “Fill these out and Dr. Craven will be right with you. I’ll let her know you’re here.” “Thank you.” Deanna replied before taking the forms and two of the pens on the desk and shuffling over to Selena, who now sat in one of the chairs. “Here you go.” Deanna said, handing one of the forms and one of the pens to Selena. “Thank you.” Selena replied before setting to work filling out the information on the sheet as it required. About six minutes passed until the young boy returned. Selena held both her form and Deanna’s in her hands, as well as the two pens. “Mrs. and Mrs. Frost? Doctor Craven is ready for you. Down the hall and first door on the left.” Said the boy politely – Selena was almost certain the doctor had told the boy to address Selena and Deanna in such a manner as a sign of good form, possibly to show that there would be no prejudice based on their lesbian relationship. It would have been comforting if Selena wasn’t overthinking it as she was in that moment. Instead, she merely helped Deanna out of her chair before handing the forms and pens back to the dark-haired boy. “Thank you.” She said before going down the path the secretary had pointed out. It did not take long for Selena and Deanna to see the white door with a glass middle. Turning the handle, Selena held the door open to allow Deanna in. Inside, the room was a lovely decorated one. With a bookshelf stretching across one side along the walls and a dark red couch that looked comfy to sit in, Selena was reminded of her own office back in her home on the private estate. “Where…where do you think we sit?” Deanna asked, looking around the room. Selena’s eyes continued to scan the room. She saw the large, dark-green chair, meant for one. She saw the chair by the desk and computer in the corner. She saw the decorative chairs located on either side of the couch. “The couch, I think.” She finally said but neither moved. “Or we wait till she tells us.” “Yeah, let’s do that.” Deanna said. “Are you sure? Your feet okay?” “This is a better day for them.” Part of being pregnant, Selena knew. It was a minor inconvenience at best and Deanna rarely complained about swollen feet, but still, Selena did her best to be observant to such things. Fortunately, they did not have to wait for long, for the door opened behind them. Immediately, before the married couple, in stepped a woman (Selena guessed only a few years older than herself). She wore a pencil skirt and blue blouse. Again, the woman’s clothes reminded Selena of the strong AC pumping through the rooms to keep them cool. “Good afternoon, Mrs. and Mrs. Frost.” The woman greeted with a smile. “I’m Dr. Craven.” “Hello.” Deanna started, causing Selena to mimic Deanna’s greeting on instinct. “Please, have a seat.” The doctor requested, gesturing towards the couch. Quickly, Deanna was sitting on the couch, Selena slowly following her. She could feel the uneasiness, like a knot, in her stomach. What Deanna was asking her to do – even if the redhead was in the room – was against Selena’s very nature. Don’t let them in, don’t let them see. Conceal, don’t feel – these were the words Selena had erected in her mind as a defence mechanism to protect herself – just like Deanna had lied after her appointment with that doctor when she was child, telling the world she was “fixed”. Selena was about to go against everything in her nature and her body was fighting it. It didn’t want to give up its personal shield of protection so easily. Still, she swallowed her nerves down and sat beside Deanna, the younger woman reaching out to take Selena’s hands into her own. Craven, for the most part, merely closed the door she had entered through before taking a seat in the dark-green chair, a clipboard in her hands, along with a pen. “So…” She started in typical fashion. “What can I do for you?” She asked. Deanna and Selena shared a glance, the latter hoping that Deanna would be the one to speak and break the ice (pun not intended). It had been her idea after all. “Well.” Deanna began. “We’ve been married for almost… five months now. Wow…feels longer.” Selena shrugged, offering a weak smile. There was no possible way to exaggerate how uncomfortable she felt in this moment. “Anyway, recently, there was an incident between my wife and…” “An ex kissed me.” Selena suddenly blurted out. “I see.” Craven replied quietly, seemingly unaffected by this revelation. “Yeah, and now Deanna wants to find out what’s wrong with me so we can move past this.” “Selena!” Deanna said in surprise. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with you-“ “Then why are we here?!” Selena asked, the anxiety building inside her. Quickly, Deanna cast a glance towards Craven. “Will you please tell her there is nothing wrong with her?” All the doctor did was shrug slightly. “Do you think there’s something wrong with her? Something that needs fixing, Mrs. Frost-“ “Okay.” Selena interjected. “This is going to get old. We’re both Mrs. Frost so how about we go by first name. I’m Selena and this is Deanna.” She said. “Very well.” Craven replied calmly. “Deanna, do you believe something about Selena needs to be fixed?” “No- but- I’m worried.” Deanna said. “We use to be honest about everything. And then this happens.” Selena countered. “You know why I didn’t say anything.” “Why was that?” Craven asked. “Because she’s pregnant and I didn’t want to stress her out – which this has clearly done.” “Well, that’s often the initial surface reason.” Craven started. “But let me ask you, Selena. Could it be that you were terrified that if you told her, she would leave you?” Selena’s eyes widened but she said nothing. “Quite often.” Craven continued regardless. “When we hide things from a marriage partner, it is because we fear the consequences it will have on us just as much as we fear the consequences it may have on them, sometimes more. Now, judging from how tightly you two have been holding hands since I came in and what you just told me – do either of you have a history with rejection?” “She does.” Both Selena and Deanna said at the same time, catching the other by surprise. “You were abandoned by your sister.” Selena stated. “And you lost your father, your former fiancé cheated on you, abandoned by your step-mother and your ex dumped you in a hospital and spent the better part of a year harassing you.” Deanna countered. “The same ex that kissed you?” Craven asked. “Yes.” Selena said. “And thanks, Deanna. You make my life sound like a series of Danielle Steele books.” “I see.” Came Craven’s reply. “Well, I would say that it is very possible that, with such a history of abandonment, would it not be possible that you chose to hide this incident from your wife because you were afraid she would leave you or hurt you like the others?” Selena said nothing, looking away to any other part of the room then where Deanna and the doctor’s eyes were studying here. She felt on display, exposed. Her breath hitched. “When we…” Craven spoke slowly, clearly not wanting to further upset her patients. “Crave companionships, we often find ourselves making extreme sacrifices for the other’s benefit. The lengths at which someone puts themselves second or third to another can be quite damaging to the giver. The need to be accepted and part of a group can be so intense that a person will do anything for it.” “Well, that’s not me.” Selena finally said. “I’m loyal, yes, but I’m not a doormat.” Her voice said with a slight growl. “Funny how you use that word.” Craven said. “Doormat. It’s not a word you like is it?” “I doubt anyone would like to be called it.” Selena replied. “But you don’t think you do a lot for people just to be accepted?” “No.” Selena said sharply. Turning her head, Craven regarded Selena’s pregnant wife. “Deanna?” Deanna had remained silent, looking down at her hands, which Selena still held. Slowly, she looked up to her wife with a sad expression. “What?” Selena asked. “You don’t think…” “I think…” Deanna tried to choose her words carefully. “That you do a lot for a lot people who then proceed to walk all over you.” “I do not! Name one person.” Selena ordered. “One person that I let walk all over me.” “Easy.” Deanna replied without hesitation. “Regan.” Selena recoiled back with a tilt of her head and a double take. “That isn’t fair.” She finally said after her stunned silence faded. “Selena! She walks all over you and you’ve done everything for her!” Deanna stated. “She’s just dealing with issues-“ “She elbowed you in the jaw!” “On accident!” “Okay.” Deanna finally said before turning to Craven. “Doctor, listen to this story and tell me that I’m wrong.” “What story?” Selena asked. “You’ll see.” Deanna promised before she turned back to Craven, her attention solely on the doctor. “About two or so weeks ago, my wife and I were backstage at an arena in Boise. Things had just gotten really sour…” ___________________________________ March 11, 2016 “Selena! You don't need this now!” Deanna called back as she tried to keep up with her wife. “Oh yes, I do!” Selena spouted back as she marched. She was still in her wrestling attire (minus the ice-shard cape she wore during her entrances). It had been a rather hectic last ten or so minutes. What had begun as a simple match between former world champions Amy Chastaine and Shilo Valiant had spiralled into utter chaos. And in that chaos, former World Champion Syren had run in, which had prompted Regan Street to run out, followed by Selena, who obviously drew out Dylan Howell. As mentioned, it had been chaos. Superstars throwing punches and kicks every which way. But what had bothered Selena the most was that, amidst the disorder, she had been cold-clocked by Regan’s elbow and sent to the mat. Turning the corner, Selena suddenly spied the two women she was looking for, both in their wrestling attires as well. “HEY!” Selena called out before marching towards both Regan Street and Sienna Swann, both women turning in surprise. “Not now.” Regan warned, an edge in her throat. “Yes now!” Selena said. “What the hell was that?” “You got in my way!” “I was trying to keep you from breaking your wrist and being taken out of the Rise to Greatness season!” Selena countered. “Oh!” Regan mocked. “So you have x-Ray vision? You’re Supergirl? Ms. Best of the Best is also Supergirl. That’s not a stretch.” “Give me a break, Regan! You were clutching your hand the entire time!” “Enough!” Came the strong voice of Sienna. “I’m sick of this! We’re supposed to be friends- we’re supposed to be sisters!” Shouted the young blonde. “But all you two can do is fight!” “I’ve tried!” Selena countered. “I’ve done everything I could do-“ “I don’t care!” Sienna said and both Selena and Deanna could see the tears brimming in her eyes. “I’m sick of seeing my two best friends fighting over bruised egos! Fix it! Or I’m done with both of you!” Without another word, Sienna turned and marched away, passing Deanna as she walked. Regan and Selena – to say the least – were stunned silent. All three remaining women, however, were grateful that there were no cameras to catch this back and forth. Slowly, Selena run a hand through her platinum-white hair. “What is it going to take?” “What?” Regan asked, still upset but clearly affected by Sienna’s words. “What do I have to do get things back to normal?” “Come on-“ “No, Regan! Sienna’s right. I can’t keep doing this anymore either. It’s killing me. I can’t focus on the Adrenaline title, I can’t do anything without worrying about pissing you off. So what the hell can I do to end these stupid issues between you and me?” Selena was expecting some kind of rant and rave from Regan. Something about “self-worth” and the World Championship. Instead, the woman known as the Hellcat rolled her shoulders back before tilting her head towards the other end of the hall. “You want to know how to end this?” “Yes.” Selena affirmed. “To put everything back to normal?” “Yes!” Regan nodded, point down the hall. “Alright. You’re going to walk down that hall, find a camera, and tell the SCW Universe that you’re going to enter the THOTF.” “What?!” Selena asked in surprise. “The royale?” Deanna’s voice was equal in surprise. “Yep.” Regan replied with finality. “Regan…” Selena tried. “That’s ridiculous- I can’t enter the royale.” “Why not?” Regan asked, clearly annoyed. “Well, for starters, it will make me a hypocrite. I have spent the last month telling the world that I had no interest in being the World Champion. Now, I’m entering a royale where the only prize is a shot at the World title? They’ll think I’m a liar!” “I don't care what they think.” Regan shot back. “This is your biggest problem, Selena. You’re too obsessed with what every single person thinks about you. Every fan, every wrestler – even your ex who tried to take your damn hair! And if one person thinks ill about you, you let it eat you up inside.” “No, I don’t.” Selena protested, but it was a weak protest at best and Deanna knew it. “You want to fix things between you and me? We both enter the royale.” “And then what? I let you eliminate me?” Selena asked. “That’s not fair.” Deanna stated. “She may have an Adrenaline title match!” It was true. Selena had just pinned the current champion last Breakdown – cleanly, too. If anyone deserved the next title shot (and have their rematch honoured) it was Selena. “And you want her to fight in the royale even if she does?” Deanna questioned. “Yes.” Regan entered. “That’s insane!” Deanna stated. “Selena, you know what she is doing.” “What?” Selena asked, still in shock. “You help her get through the royale and then she eliminates you so she looks better than you. You know, Regan-“ Deanna couldn’t control herself. The hormones in her body were raging. “I think the real problem to this Platinum thing is you because you can’t accept that someone is better than you!” Instead of being annoyed, Regan merely scoffed. “You’re damn right I can’t. I’m not like your wife, Deanna. I can’t settle for a second or third tier belt. I want the big title. I want the big name. And I work day and night to prove that I am the best. Now, people are thinking Selena could be one of the best. And that puts her in my way.” Selena turned to stare at Regan. “So you want me to get you to the final few and then let you eliminate me?” “No.” Regan said, surprising both Deanna and Selena. “You’re going to try and win it. Really try and win it!” “Why would I do that?! That makes even less sense. Why would I try and win a match to get a shot at a title that I don’t want?!” “Because then when I eliminate you-“ Regan concluded. “It’ll be real. That’s it. Do this and we’re square.” “Unless of course I eliminate you.” Selena said sharply. Regan laughed. “Well, we can cross that bridge IF it comes up.” Selena huffed, looking around the small area where she, Regan and Deanna stood. She was trapped. She didn’t want to be in the royale. She wasn’t ready to be World Champion. She still believed that. Regan was. Syren was. Ravyn, Amy, Red Rayne – them and so many others that would surely be in the royale were ready to be the World Champion. Not Selena. But if she didn’t do this – Regan would never get over this. Sure, she could lose momentum, maybe even cost her an Adrenaline title shot. “Alright.” She whispered. “What?” Regan asked, leaning in. “I said that I would do it.” Selena said, looking up. “I’ll enter the Royale.” “And you’ll try and win it?” Regan ordered, narrowing her eyes at Selena. “It’s no deal if you don’t-“ “FINE!” Selena all but shouted. “I’ll try and win the damn royale! You want me to cross my heart and hope to die?!” “No. Your word is one of the strongest I know here.” Regan said simply before turning to go. Before she disappeared, however, she turned her head back to the Frosts. “And who knows.” She teased. “Maybe you’ll win the whole thing.” She said, winking towards Selena before heading down the hallway, out of sight. Selena didn’t move for a second but as her brain completely caught up with her, she leaned against the wall. “What have I done?” She asked quietly before turning her head to her wife. Not surprisingly, Deanna did not say or do anything. She simply watched Selena. “Well said.” Selena said with a sad smile. “Come on.” “Where are we going?” Deanna asked. “First, you’re going back to our changeroom so we don't have to deal with the idea of Howell causing trouble for you or me.” “What about you?” “I’m… I’m going to find a cameraman, go in front of a camera and-“ “You can’t.” Deanna said in alarm. “You can’t be serious!” “I have to.” Selena said. “It’s the only way to get things back to normal between Sienna, Regan and I.” “Even if it’s to do something you don’t believe in? Something you don’t want?” Selena shrugged. “I’ve done a lot worse. Trust me.” Without another word, The Snow Queen rolled her shoulders back. She walked past Deanna, leaning down to kiss her cheek as she passed, before continuing on her way down the hall, looking for a cameraman to running a thousand things in her head to possibly explain everything – without looking like the worst person in the world. ___________________________________ “She doesn’t even want it!” Deanna proclaimed. “She’s fighting a match that she doesn’t want – for a prize that she doesn’t believe in! Tell me that isn’t messed up!” She asked Dr. Craven. The doctor leaned back in her chair, her clipboard resting in her lap. She took a moment to think before turning her gaze to Selena Frost, who stood in another corner of the room, closer to the bookshelf. “Selena?” Craven asked. “Would this event not seem like you’re letting other people order you around – to do what they want you to do even if you don’t want to do it – just for acceptance?” Selena clenched her jaw shut, her hand shooting up into her hair scratch her scalp in irritation. “What’s the point in answering. You both have the same answer. You want me to say I’m a doormat? Fine. I’m a doormat!” Happy, now?” She raised her arms and dropped them. “It’s not a matter of me being happy.” Craven replied. “But you clearly are not and neither is your wife. We need to find a way to change that.” “Change.” Deanna repeated. “Not fix.” Selena looked at both women as she stood in the room. She had to admit to herself, having the story/scene retold from Deanna’s perspective…It had forced Selena to think. How many times had she done something for someone else in her career? How many times had she put someone else’s needs before her own? Dawn’s? Platinum’s? The few times she had put herself and her needs first – the Adrenaline title and her identity as a Frost – it had blown up in her face over and over again. And yet, Regan’s words kept ringing in her ears. “I don’t get it.” Selena finally said to herself, unaware that Craven and Deanna could hear her words. “Why am I so obsessed with the approval of everyone? Why am I so afraid of losing someone? Why can’t I just be confident and believe in myself like so many other people do?” “I can help with that.” Craven offered, causing Selena to jump a little. “Help with that?” She asked. “With your perception of yourself and your situation.” “You heard that?” Selena asked in surprise. “You were talking out loud, Selena.” Deanna explained. “I was?” Both Deanna and Craven nodded, causing Selena to sigh before returning to the couch to sit with Deanna. “So…what can you do?” She finally asked. Craven spoke slowly. “Well, it’s really about what you want. If you want to be more confident in yourself, we need to address why you feel the constant need for acceptance and fear of failing others.” “Is that where you’re going to hypnotize me?” Selena asked, worry creeping into her voice. Craven nodded. “Somewhat but it will be more a journey. I believe the issue has to do with your past events of being abandoned. If we can isolate which one it is, perhaps it can further assist you with your views of self-worth.” “How…how long is it going to take?” Selena asked quietly. “We can do it sometime next week. Can be an hour or two, but I wouldn’t really go more than an hour for your first time, Selena.” “And Deanna can be in the room at all times?” Craven nodded, allowing Selena to relax. Casting a glance at Deanna, Selena watched her wife squeeze her hands and shake them in support. “This will work.” She whispered to Selena. Turning her head back to Craven, The Snow Queen slowly nodded her head in acceptance. “Alright.” She finally said. “Let’s do it.” _____________________________________________ [align=center] [/align][align=center]The Royal Letter[/align] Dear True-Believers of SCW, To be constantly exposed. To have your every move, every word viewed through a microscope and analyzed to death. It is certainly one of the problems I deal with in this career of professional wrestling. Since I first desired any form of success, I’ve had my actions and words scrutinized. I knew I would – I expected it. But the truth is, true-believers, I never really expected it to come from my co-workers - the roster. I expected it from the SCW audience. That is what you pay for – to voice your opinions. That is your right. Yet, as far back as I can remember, it has been the roster that has been the loudest in doing all it can to discredit me. When I started challenging for the Adrenaline title, I was a “gold-whore”. When Christy Matthews was attacked by New Eden, I was a “two-faced bitch” for not seeing the attack. When I congratulated Money in the Bank for their amazing talents, I was suddenly, and I am paraphrasing slightly here, “supporting thieves and losers in SCW”. I never understood how people could take a sentence – a moment and twist the hell out of it to paint so poor a picture about a person. I’ve always believed that “actions speak louder than words” and I’ve done my best to lead by actions, supporting my friends and family and standing up for SCW against such factions as Monarchy and Blood Grove. Because words from someone like Christy Matthews don’t mean anything – but when she hides away and refuses to come on television once she has her title? That action speaks volumes. And because of my views, I’ve been accused of being “oh so wrong” and “the dumbest person in SCW”, but the truth is, I’m just not someone that will twist the facts until they are so false that any fool can call me on it. I base my observations – my beliefs – on the truth, not some distorted reality that serves me. Now, obviously, not everyone in SCW feels that way. Some would rather lie and fabricate facts to bring me down. Others will lie to themselves, telling themselves that I am something that I am not. I know one person for sure that has made a living these last few weeks doing just that, but I will get to him in a second. My point is that I am often stunned by how hard members of the SCW roster work to paint me as this selfish monster, while you, the amazing true-believers that you are, continue to support me despite their lies. Do they fear us? Do they fear me? What we can do? What I can do? If they were trying to destroy me physically, that would make sense. That’s part of the business (a darker part), but these people are trying to destroy who I am and what I stand for. To drag me through the mud. Put me through the emotional ringer and “expose me”. Is it fear of what I can do? Or is it fear of what has been created? Without a doubt, true-believers, the “We Believe” movement has become something far more than even I ever dreamed it could be. The support, the faith – I walk into an arena or a go to a fan meet and greet and am constantly amazed by it – stunned to silence more often than not. Adam Sharper, bless the man, constantly tells me that I have – he calls it – one of the “biggest pops” at the shows. Is that what these people in the roster fear? That what I represent with you, true-believers, is bigger than them – that it is something special? Like lightning in a bottle? Regardless of why or what they fear, my image will not be so tainted. I promise you that. I will continue to be honest and fight for what I believe in, standing tall and speaking my mind and heart. If I am true to myself and true to all of you than what can they possibly do to smear that? What can they “expose”? Nothing. I know they will try, true believers, especially with how things are now. For now, I find myself in the Taking Hold of the Flame Battle Royale. Immediately upon announcing it, friends, I imagined the same people I mentioned earlier, jumping on the attack. “I thought Selena didn’t want the World Title.” “Selena said she wasn’t going to try to be World Champion.” “She’s screwing over her pal Regan.” And a dozen more insults like that, once more attacking my credibility. Truth is, people, Regan is one of the reasons I am here in this royale in the first place. You see, despite Regan and I going through a rough patch, I have always tried to be there for her and help her. And, ever since Best of the Best, Regan has wanted to prove herself to all of SCW in a fight against me. Now, because of paths and journeys, that never really happened. But at Taking Hold of the Flame? It can happen. Yes, I won’t lie, the former World Champion, Regan Street, dared me to enter the royale with the intent of facing me in ring. And maybe this WILL make me sound like a hypocrite, but after I thought about it… I found that I wanted to do it! And no, not because of the “prize” or the idea of being “World Champion”. That’s not what did it. Think about it for just a second, true-believers. Forty wrestlers. Unlike the Best of the Best tournament, you are eliminated by being thrown over the ropes and out of the ring. Luck is such a factor here, but 40 wrestlers fighting with all they have. Some of the best talent in SCW – and the former world champion wants me ME to enter so she can try and fight me. This…this is why I stay in wrestling. Amidst the slander and insults from the roster, once in awhile, someone from that same roster will give you an opportunity that you crave, even if you didn’t realize you were craving it. Admittedly, I didn’t want to be part of the royale while I was Adrenaline Champion and if I am chosen to fight for the Adrenaline title at Taking Hold of the Flame (shout it loud, true believers - #AddyTHOTF) then I will honour that commitment with all I am and fight to regain the Adrenaline championship! But regardless, after everything that’s happened. Teaming with Regan, teaming with Dawn – all the highs and lows that’s come from being involved with the people I am involved with in SCW – the opportunity that Regan dared me to go for, fighting my way through some of the best… It’s intoxicating. Because I never enjoyed my time in Best of the Best, believers. I couldn’t. In a tournament where my very identity was on the line, every match was a nightmare. I was always panicking, always nervous, always scared that the next match would be my end. I never could enjoy it. I never could take it all in and do what I wanted to do. I had to focus on doing whatever was needed to win and save my family’s name. Now, whether I’m no. 4 or 5 or the last one to enter, it doesn’t matter. I can and will enjoy it. I can savour it. I can take my time and look for each and every opportunity to learn, to grow but also to do what, so far, I’ve not been allowed to do. And the first thing I want to do is deal with Regan Street. What I want to do is help her. What I want to do is what I have tried to do from the get-go. I want to help Regan through as much of the royale as I can. Predictable? You’re damn right it is. I’ve only been in one royale besides this one in my career and that was to try and aid my partner at the time, Dawn Lohan, in winning it. It did not work out but that is who I am. I stand by those I believe in and I fight for them. That is who I am. And, no matter what has happened, I still believe in Regan Street. Regan, I know why you dared me to enter this royale. I know that you want to face me and prove something to yourself and to SCW after Best of the Best. You see something in me that, to be honest, I do not see. I don’t even know what it is – if it even exists. But at the same time, you know you’ve taught me so much. Everything I said at Best of the Best was true at how you changed me, saved my life – all of it. I won’t repeat my mistake and single you out here, but helping you, standing by your side until it is time for us to fight eachother? That is something that I WANT to do. That is something that being in this match allows me to do. Because lately, it seems that I’ve just been in your way. SCW opted to replace you with me in that tag-dream match between 4Saken and Dark Fantasy and I tried to keep you from being injured when you were attacking Syren earlier. The truth is, Regan, that I miss the Platinum days. I want things back to the way they were. Maybe that’s asking a lot, but I don't care. I miss standing by your side and Platinum being strong. I miss seeing you smile because you were happy. I haven’t seen that in so long and I know Sienna misses that too. You dared me into this match to help solve the issues between us and immediately, that became more than enough reason to enter it – even if the roster tears me apart with names of “hypocrite” and “liar”. And those name-calling moments are coming. After all, we haven’t even heard from your brother yet. Sorry, Regan, but I wasn’t lying when I said yo daring me was “part of the reason” I was entering the royale. Not much of a surprise to anyone, I am sure, but the other part is Dylan Howell. For weeks, this slime has harassed me, my wife, my friends – he’s interfered with my matches, ruining them like he ruined the dream tag match between 4Saken and Dark Fantasy. He’s attacked me countless times and gone as far as to steal the championship that means so much to me. And yet, he evdes me. He refuses to accept a challenge from me. And while I am campaigning for the Adrenaline title to be put on the line, I also understand that the odds of also facing Howell at the Pay-Per-View are not likely… Except, of course, for the Royale. The Royale allows me to do so much if luck is on my side. If I am lucky to survive long enough or come in early enough to meet him in the ring. By being part of the royale…I can get my hands on that jackass and make him pay – No. Not just pay. I can make him regret every vile word and action he has done against me and my family. Do I sound vindictive? Do I sound vengeful? I know, true-believers. The Dragon is a side of me that does not come out to play very often, but how can it not this time around? This man – no, this weasel - attacked me, attacked Sienna and has dragged my name through the mud with fake “Wanted Posters”, a fake “Adrenaline title” Twitter account, and countless other incidents – including his promise to “expose me”.. But more than that, he threatened my wife and the child she is carrying. My child – more important to me than any title or championship match. Dylan threatened that treasure and all because I believe in Regan Street and will stand by her. You are petty, Dylan. A petty, pathetic little man. And what’s worse is that at one point, I actually was envious of you and Regan. Both of you, from such a proud family. A legacy. But more than that, you, and especially Regan, had dealt with your names being dragged through the mud. Silas Mason sure did a number on Regan’s reputation and how did she take it? She rolled her shoulders back and said “I don't care what people think of me. I am who I am.”. I always respected her for that. It’s funny because she told me recently that I am too obsessed with making everyone like me. Of making everyone at work like me. Of not having one person think anything bad of me. Yet, here, it does – it drives me crazy sometimes just how much some co-workers genuinely hate me. Who aren’t shy in saying so – and usually with reasons that are weak at best. Some days, I wish I could turn it off and not care what people thought of me. The true-believers believe in me and my family believes in me – that would surely be enough for me. I wish I could turn off the effect slander has in my mind – that the lies and crap flung at me by people like Christy Matthews and especially you, Dylan, don’t have an effect on me. I wish I could shrug it off as easily as you and Regan do, Dylan. But that is my issue. I did envy you before all of this happened – just like I envied Regan. But after seeing the beginning of your end during the Shot of Adrenaline tournament and until recently, I pitied you. I truly did. You’ve failed over and over again in championship matches. You failed at Shot of Adrenaline, Best of the Best, you failed at trying to become President of the United States, failed at becoming Television champion – But more than that, I’ve seen your wife’s tweets. I’ve heard the words from much more blunt superstars like Shilo Valiant and Shawn Winters. The idea that you are a “Failure as a man and as a father”. Their words. Not mine. But I can’t imagine being anything like that, Dylan. I can’t imagine reaching a point where my wife looks ill upon me. Where she does not believe that I have our baby’s best interests at heart. Where she thinks I don’t love my family – love her – with all I am. I can’t imagine reaching a point so low that I fail them like that, Dylan. So, yes, for a time I pitied you and, on some level, I understood why you outsourced your frustrations onto me. I represented everything you wanted. I was the Adrenaline champion, had the support of a member of your family and had the respect of several people on the roster and the love and respect of the SCW Universe and had just started a loving marriage with a wonderful woman. Everything you wanted. It’s taken me some time to look past my own emotions and realize what you saw of me, but I did. It’s the reason why I said I would happily face you, Dylan. Why I said that I would defend the title against you if you just named a time and place. Because, on some level, I wanted to help you. I wanted to give you want you wanted – a match for the title – so that maybe you could get your life back on track. Because I figured children, even yours, deserve parents. But then you threatened MY family, Dylan. Then you tried to ruin MY life. Day after day, week after week, you tried to bring me down to your level of depravity and insanity. On Twitter, across the SCW shows, you tried to paint me as something that I am not. And no matter how many times I proved you wrong, how many times my actions made you look evermore the insane fool, you kept trying to turn me into you because misery loves company. My pity for you ended then and there, Dylan, and now? All that I have left is rage. All I have is a need to kick your damn head off from turnbuckle to turnbuckle. To send you out of the ring and eliminate you from the battle Royale after I have wrecked you. And I… I don't care how that makes me look to the roster members. Because I have had enough! Enough of the emotional turmoil, enough of the attacks and enough of the threats! Hate me. Insult me. Call me whatever you want because I am in the Royale. Let us let the roster do that, true-believers, but the reality that we all know? I am getting EVERYTHING I could possibly desire (short of the Adrenaline title) by being a part of this. Not to become World Champion or whatever promise every superstar will tack onto the end of their promo, but to do the two things that matter the most to me in SCW right now. 1. Stand by my sister Regan and learn from this great opportunity. 2. To make Dylan Howell pay for all he has done. Pay very dearly! And I have to believe that I will accomplish both of these goals. I have to believe that fate will be kind to me and grant me a number in the match that allows me to enter and achieve both. Whether it’s coming in before either Regan or Dylan do and simply surviving till the opportunities come or being placed in the middle of the pack with both of them, I have to believe that, regardless, I will get my chance to make all of this right.. As for what happens after I eliminate Dylan? And after I’ve helped Regan and it’s time to fight her and the other amazing talents? When it’s every person for themselves and the opportunity to win the royale is there… That is something I am not ready to talk about…yet. For now, believe my words. Whether SCW favours me in the Adrenaline title or not… Whether I am seen as a hypocrite, a liar, both or as something more by entering this Royale… The Dragon will be anything but silent when she is unleashed upon it! Believe it! #FeartheDragon Sincerely, Selena Michelle Frost |
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| The Matt | May 27 2016, 08:08 PM Post #13 |
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Advanced Member
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And my Angelica effort. This has been fun! http://legacyrevival.blogspot.com/2016/05/...re-secrets.html |
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| Jake Starr | May 27 2016, 08:27 PM Post #14 |
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Official SCW Social Misfit & Apparent Telemarketer
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"Coming Clean" - SCW RP #289 Opponent: Taking Hold of the Flame Battle Royal Date: 05.27.16 OOC Note: This RP actually takes place after Greg's second. I just won't have time to post tomorrow so I'm getting it up tonight. |
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| Sean | May 28 2016, 12:05 AM Post #15 |
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The One They Forgot
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[align=center] Do you know my name? Does it even matter? My name isn’t on par with the likes of Shawn Winters, Greg Cherry, or Jason Zero. I’m Justin Davis. Plain and simple. I’m a former Underground and Tag Team Champion. Nothing more than that. Does it bother me that is how I will be remembered? Just a couple of titles to my name? It bothers me every single time I think about it. For two years I sat at home, worked a regular job as a manager at Anytime Fitness, and Fathered my children, and tried to be the greatest husband to a wonderful wife, Amber. Though, working at an Anytime Fitness didn’t cut it for me. I even tried to work some independent wrestling events in the Boston area to try to get some more money, but that also wasn’t cutting it for me. I wasn’t being the Father I wanted to be. There was no way I wanted to live my life paycheck by paycheck. It was killing me day by day. I sat at home every day after work and thought it may have been a good idea to go back to SCW. For two years, I kept debating it, but kept shooting it down. Amber wouldn’t allow it, either. She didn’t want me to live the life as a professional wrestler. She wanted me to be a real Dad where the kids will be able to see me on a daily basis. Jayden is just a year away from school, and our new child, Jocelyn, is just a year old. Amber also knows what wrestling does to me. The depression. The anger. But, most importantly, the damage to my body on a weekly basis. She doesn’t want that anymore. And, honestly, I didn’t really want that anymore, but I want to make sure my family can have a stable life, so I have to do what I have to do. That’s why I’m here. That’s why I entered my name into the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal. Winning that battle royal will not only give me the big pay day going into the biggest event of the year, which will help my family grow, but also it will help me regain the fame I once had years ago when people saw me as the future, as the Star of Tomorrow. That man who once was a contender for the World Championship. Taking Hold of the Flame will allow me to gain back to that shining moment, and hopefully a new life for my family. All I need to do is eliminate 39 other men and women… I can’t fail. “Justin, what in the world are you wearing?” I walk into the living room where Amber is feeding, Jocelyn by the bottle. She just can’t stop staring and laughing at my camouflage t-shirt and pants. Not only the laughter, but you can see the confusion in her eyes. The clothes are a bit random, yes, but there is a reason behind it. She stops feeding Jocelyn for a moment and rises up to her feet and circles around me with a big smile on her face. “What? You don’t like it?” “It’s not that I hate them, but why are you wearing them?” “The guys and I are going on a weekend trip to upstate New Hampshire to camp, fish, and you know guy stuff.” It’s sad that I can’t even tell my wife the truth, because if I told her the truth I don’t know how she would take it. Like I said, she doesn’t want me in this game anymore. Busting my body every week to entertain the masses and get that big pay day. She knew how my body was going through a rough time the last time I stepped in a ring. She also saw how this profession took over my life for the bad. The friends I made that soon turned into my enemy. It was a rough life. “Why didn’t you mention this to me beforehand?” “Everything wasn’t final until like yesterday.” “Okay…..babe. Make sure you don’t forget anything.” I feel if she turns on that television and sees me in that ring, the next time I come home the kids and Amber won’t be here. There will be a note on the kitchen table that probably reads “Goodbye. I hope wrestling brings you happiness.” Plus, more bull shit about how I killed this family and so on. But, I need this. Not only for me, but most importantly, for family. Things could be different though. Maybe I could come home and toss a whole lot of money on the table and see a big smile on all their faces, and them running over to me giving one big hug and thanking me. That’s only a fantasy though, and I know that won’t happen. A man can dream. It was a Wednesday afternoon and I already had my bags packed. I sat on my queen size bed in my medium sized plain white bedroom and just pondered to myself for minutes. I was days away from my return to a SCW ring. The contract has already been signed and there was no turning back. I should be hyped up, but the thought of an angered, Amber, kept racing through my head. I couldn’t get it out of my head. When I saw Jayden running into the bedroom brought a smile to my face. “I’m going to miss you, Dada” “Oh, come on, buddy… I won’t be gone that long. Just a few days.” I kissed his forehead and pushes his medium length brown hair away from his face. He looked sad. This is probably the longest I’ve been away from him in a long while. He’s not going to get his weekly play day in the backyard. The two of us playing catch with the football. Some baseball. Anything that kid wanted, I would do. I just want him to be happy. This weekend is going to be different. He’s going to be playing by himself in that backyard. Amber is going to be too busy cleaning up the house and watching over little ole’ Jocelyn. Sigh. I just got to keep telling myself it will be all worth it in the end. A better life. A happier family. That’s all I ask for. “I know, Dada, but….you’re never gone this long.” “It’ll be okay, I promise.” I gave him one more hug before he ran off. It took me a few minutes to get up and grab my bag to head to the living room to say goodbye to, Amber. A little hard breathing in and out before I headed out there and saw her standing there in front of the door holding, Jocelyn in her arms. She had a smile on her face while I walked into her arms for that big hug and the soft kiss on the cheek and the words “I love you” whispered into my ear. At that moment, I knew I was doing the right thing. “You deserve this little vacation after all your hard work.” “That’s all I’ve been hearing from the boys. It’s going to feel good. But, I just want to make sure you’re going to be okay taking care of the kids all by yourself.” “Don’t worry about me, Justin. I’ll be fine. Jayden and Jocelyn will be fine. You’re just going to be gone until Sunday, so it won’t totally be that bad.” “Actually, I won’t be back until Monday night.” “Monday night?” “Yeah, the guys want to make the best of this weekend. Catch the best fish. Some great hiking. We want to do a lot.” “ …. alright. That’s fine. Just try not to be that late.” She didn’t look so thrilled. She actually looked annoyed, but I understand. I’m never gone this long and that means more work for her. In the end though, it’s going to be all worth it. The money. The happiness. That’s all I’m thinking about. All I want is to see the smiles on my kids face and see a bright smile on my Amber’s face. That’s all I ever dream of. I lay one more kiss on the cheek of Amber and now I’m the one whispering in her right ear “I love you” before Amber starts to walk off. I stare at them before opening the door and stepped outside. I stand there for a few moments and let out a deep sigh of relief. I just know this is the right thing to do. I hope this is worth it. + + + Two plus years…. I never thought I would find myself back inside a SCW ring. I gave my notice to O. D. and walked away from SCW. Not wanting to comeback. I was done. There was turning back. But….now I’m here. Just days away from stepping BACK into that SCW to battle thirty-nine other men and women to take hold of the flame and head into the biggest event of the year, Rise to Greatness to fight for the SCW World Championship. A championship everyone guns for when they join the company. It’s the most prestigious championship in the wrestling world. Some greats have won that championship. I myself contended for that championship at one point in my career, but failed to capture it. I got so close twice, but fell flat. This time I promise things will be different, well, I hope things will be different. I have to win the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal. I must main event Rise to Greatness, and I NEED to become the SCW World champion. Sure there is so many threats in this Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal. A lot of names I’m pretty familiar with, like Greg Cherry, Shaun Cruze, Jake Starr, Stacy Kissinger, and even a man I know all so well, James Evans. Then there is the people I’m not so familiar with but have made a big splash during my hiatus, people like, Regan Street, Amy Chastaine, and Kennedy Street. Every single person in this match is fighting for the same thing and that is to face, Rachel Foxx, a girl I know very well. A girl that I once called my friend, a mentor, but she turned on me and left me with scars. She was someone I would take a bullet for, but now I see her as an enemy. I hope she defeats Ace Marshall at Taking Hold of the Flame, and goes onto Rise to Greatness to defend that championship. And, I hope I’m the one standing face to face with her in the middle of that ring so we can go to war once again. The dream… I’ve been in this company, off and on, since 2007. Nearly 10 years. I’ve accomplished so little, and that bothers me. I know I say that a lot, but it really does bother. I’m never going to let go that I once was an Underground champion for only ten long days, and losing my title to the infamous, Chris Lawler, at Rise to Greatness. Heck, I wouldn’t have been a Tag Team champion if it wasn’t for Glacier getting hurt and being gone for a good portion of a year. Things have never been so great for me in this company. But, I’m looking to change that at Taking Hold of the Flame. I want to be that sole person left standing in that ring with my music playing over the loud speaker and the announcer saying “The winner of the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal, JUSTIN DAVIS!”. That may be just a dream, but I’m looking to make that dream a reality. I will not allow anyone to ruin this. I know people like James Evans will try to spoil it for me. Greg Cherry, who has won the match once before, will try to ruin this for me. Jake Starr. Shaun Cruze. I can keep going on the names that I’ve met before in this ring that will love to once again make a mockery of me and end my comeback before it can even start. There is no end to this story just yet. Whatever it may be. Whoever it may be. It doesn’t matter who steps inside that ring with me at Taking Hold of the Flame. I will do my best to show this nearly forty-year old man can still do this, and I will make damn sure that I don’t let me family down, because honestly, if it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be here right now spitting my game. You probably wouldn’t even hear the name Justin Davis ever again. This whole thing I like to career is dedicated to my family. I will do anything for my family just to give them the happy life they deserve. I have more determination than I have ever had in my whole career here. Sure, this whole thing may be about the money, but I won’t get that money without winning that battle royal, and without winning that SCW World Championship. Winning that World Championship means my wife and kids get that perfect life I have been dreaming of since the day I started this family with, Amber. I will make this whole thing worth it. I will not fail. I will take hold of the flame. + + + “You sure you’re up for this, Davis?” “Oh yeah. I’m sure.” The faithful day is almost near. Everything is becoming oh so real right now. I sit in a small dark room with a couch, a table, a couple chairs, and a microphone that sits in the middle of the table. An interviewer that goes by the name of, Marisa Condolesa, sits in front of me. She is awaiting to ask the big questions everyone is probably dying to hear. Why am I here? Where have I been? And, anything else the lady can come up with. “Are you ready?” “Let’s do this.” She gives the thumbs up to the cameraman as I see the countdown and then the red light on the camera goes on. Marisa starts shuffling through her papers before conducting the interview. “Ladies and gentlemen, I’m here today with the return, Justin Davis, who has been absent from the SCW for nearly two years now. Justin, tell us, why have you been gone so long?” “There was a lot of reasons why I walked away from SCW so long ago. I wasn’t liking how I was booked, I just didn’t have the drive to do this anymore, and I also wanted to be a better father to my son, Jayden, and a better husband to my now wife, Amber. I was actually retired. I was working a regular job at an Anytime Fitness as a manager, and was doing some side things. I had the real life, and not the life of a man who goes city to city each week to entertain the masses while damaging my body from head to toe. It wasn’t what I wanted anymore. Look at me now, Marisa. I look the best I’ve ever looked.” “There is no denying that, Justin. Those two years really did help you. But, if you didn’t want to return. If you walked away and retired, why are you back? Unfinished business, maybe?” “You could say that. There is so many things I wanted to accomplish in this company. Not only winning that World Championship, which is indeed at the top of my list, but there are too many wrongdoings I must fix. I was never the most successful man here in the SCW. I’ve been Underground Champion and Tag Champion, I’ve won a few awards, and contending for every championship in this company. I’ve faced some of the greats here in SCW, but tell Marisa how did I fair against these guys? Don’t worry you don’t have to answer that, because I’ll answer it for you. It didn’t go so well. I have faced people like Jake Starr, Greg Cherry, and Shaun Cruze. All former champions and I couldn’t come up with the win. Stuff like that was killing me, Marisa. I didn’t think this sport was made for some like me. So, for the two years, I had a lot of thinking to do. Is SCW the place for, Justin Davis? Only when the price is right, Marisa?” “Only if the price is right? So, are you saying that you will only fight for the big cash?” “You are correct, Marisa. I’m all about that money now. So, anyway I can bring in the big money, I will do my all to come out on top. This is all about my family like I said before. I must give my family the life they deserve. I don’t want to live check by check anymore, Marisa. That is why I joined the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal. If I win that match and go onto win the World championship at Rise to Greatness. That doesn’t only cross off the top thing on my bucket list here in SCW, but by winning that belt means my family gets that comfortable life.” “I respect that, Justin. I can see that your main goal, which is the main goal for everyone here in SCW, is to win that World Championship, and of course win that Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal. You will be facing some of the best competition in that battle royal. What makes you think you’re going to be able to toss thirty-nine other men and women over that top rope to win?” “It’s going to be a tough task because I will be facing some of the greatest here in SCW today, but I will do whatever I can to walk out the winner of that match.” I feel some vibration in my pants and reach into my pocket and pull out my phone to see I got a text message from, Amber. It must be urgent because she barely texts me. I open up the text that reads “Justin you got to call me as soon as possible. It’s Jayden, something is wrong”. Everything just stopped. I was confused. My heart felt crushed. I nearly collapsed to my knees. Marisa rises up to her feet and tries to help me up as does the other people in the room. They put me back in my chair as I start breathing pretty heavily. They think it’s a health problem as they start yelling for some medical help. I throw my hand up in the air and tell them to stop. “No. Stop. Don’t worry I’m fine. I just need a few minutes.” They all back off as I rise up to my feet and exit the room and into the hallway. I pull my phone out of my pocket and stare at that text message some more as I shake my head massively back and forth repeating the words “no” time after time after time again. I just couldn’t believe what I was reading. This changes everything for me. I’m going to have to go back home. This whole dream of winning the battle royal and the World championship has come to a pause. My career is on the line. There is no way they will not allow me to drop out of this match at short notice. I just didn’t know what to do. I quickly dial Amber’s number into my cell phone and the phone only rang once on the other side as Amber answered rather quickly. “Amber….” “Justin…..it’s Jayden He collapsed in the backyard. He almost died, Justin.” I can hear the emotion in her voice and how scared she is right now for, Jayden. I’m scared to, I’m just so nervous to even say anything. I actually really don’t know what to say. I’m in shock. It takes me a few moments to even speak. “Are you at the hospital?” “Yes. There doing tests now, Justin. You got to come home now. Tell your friends you’re sorry, but this is a family emergency. Your son could die tonight, Justin.” “There is no way I can get there tonight, Amber. I’m miles away. It would take me hours to even get. I may be too late.” “You have to be here! I can’t do this alone, Justin. You love your son, right?” “I do, but I can’t. I won’t be able to get there until Monday like I told you before you left.” The conversation goes silent for a moment. I can sense some anger on the other side. Amber is also breathing pretty heavily. “I’m sorry, Amber.” “No. You’re turning back to your old self, Justin. If you were at work, you would come rushing in just minutes. I don’t understand how you can’t just tell your friends you got to come home. If your won dies tonight, Justin, this relationship dies tonight too.” “Don’t you dare do this right now, Amber. Jayden will be okay; I know he will be. He’s strong like his father. He probably really wore himself down playing in the background, or probably took a big fall. Please trust me, Amber.” “I hope you’re right, Justin, I really do.” Before I can say anything else, Amber hangs up the phone. That right there hit me hard. I knew I fucked up big time, and this decision I made really could be a costly one. I walk into the bathroom and lock the door behind me. I walk over to the sink and turn the faucet on as the water begins to flow out. The mirror in front of me is cracked but I’m still able to see my reflection. I stare at it for a few moments before splashing some warm water into my face. “Am I making the right decision?” I let out a sigh as I splash more water in my face and eyes and then stare into the mirror some more. Is this really me? I should be on the next plane to Boston, but I’m still here. This isn’t like me. Months ago I could care less about wrestling and the SCW. Now I’m here. Getting ready for the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal, as my kid is in the hospital back home. I can’t believe myself, but this will be worth it. This will be worth it, god damn it. I signed that contract for a reason. I’m not turning back. I storm out of the bathroom and head back into the room for the interview. Marisa turns around in her chair and stares at me with a smile on her face while nodding her head. I sit in my chair and brush myself off while giving the cameramen in the room a thumbs up to tell them I’m ready. “You ready to finish this, Justin?” “Don’t I look ready to you?” “Alright, let’s do this.” No matter what... I'm here to stay. Because, in the end, this will all be worth it, for me. [/align] |
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| Dresser Boys | May 28 2016, 01:19 AM Post #16 |
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Karma's Warrior
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OOC: Yes this is clearly why MV is not allow to watch NXT, but with Katie's current role and MV. THotF moment is too good to pass up. [align=center] The Dresser Boy | Marcus V. Lopez | "The Demon Awakens"[/align] {The episode starts in a park in New York City. The scene opens to MV sitting on a bench at the playground watching her daughter, Isabella swinging on the swing and her mom, Ashlee on the swing next to her. MV smiles as he looks really happy and he seems like he’s in a good place.} {The bushes ruffle behind MV. The camera view changes to first person view from the bushes as someone steps out and careful sneaks up behind him. The camera view changes back to MV sitting on the bench and we see Sparky who is in a bear suit sit down next to MV. Sparky is wearing a trench coat and glass trying to go as incognito as possible.} Sparky: Psh… psh… {Sparky gets MV’s attention as MV looks over and sees Sparky. He sees what he is wearing and knows it can’t be good and just shakes his head.} Marcus V. Lopez: I haven’t seen around in awhile Sparky. I got to admit my life has been pretty good. Sparky: Shhh…. No names. This is very dangerous work. That’s why we use code names. [b}Marcus V. Lopez:[/b] Uh yeah, no thank you. I’m not calling you dat. Sparky: But we agreed on this together. We agreed to use code names. Understood Frenchie. Marcus V. Lopez: Dat’s not even a good code name for me. Everyone knows dat’s what Katie calls me in SCW. Sparky: If you didn’t like it you should’ve spoken up at our last meeting when we agreed on the code names. Marcus V. Lopez: We had a meeting to agreed on code names? You know I’ll only do the names if we get to switch names. Sparky: What? No. Marcus V. Lopez: Yes. Otherwise I’m not doing it. Sparky pauses for a second and thinks it over. He looks really upset with MV, but eventually caves.} Sparky: Alright fine, Sugar Bear. Marcus V. Lopez: Dat’s better. Alright Frenchie what news does you got for me? Sparky: Well it just so happens to be time for this years Taking Hold of the Flame event and… Marcus V. Lopez: (interrupting) No. I’m not doing it. I can’t do it. I just told you dat Ashlee and I are getting along. She’s letting me see Isabella. If I tell her about Taking Hold of the Flame she’s going to smack me in the head with a frying pan and there is going to be no little birdies flying. I’ll have a concussion and then there is no way I’ll be competing. Sparky: Sugar Bear, what are you saying? Marcus V. Lopez: I’m saying no, Frenchie. I can’t and won’t do it. Sparky: I see well this is awkward then. Marcus V. Lopez: You signed up for the battle royal, didn’t you? Sparky: Maybe. Marcus V. Lopez: How did you sign me up for the battle royal without me knowing? Sparky: Well… {The scene changes to SCW Headquarters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in the offices with one employee walking over to another with a sheet of paper.} SCW Employee 1: Hey can I ask you a question? I got an entry form for Taking Hold of the Flame this year. Can you tell me whose it is? SCW Employee 2: Sure, let me take a look. {The SCW Employees check out the paper work and the signature is just scribbled lines.} Marcus V. Lopez: Dat still doesn’t explain how you managed to get me into the battle royal. What did you use to write with? Sparky: One of those motorized pencils. It does all the work for you. You should check out sky mall some time. {Back in Toronto, the SCW Employees continue to investigate the signature on the form and end up matching the scribbles to MV’s SCW contract.} Marcus V. Lopez: No way dat’s legal. SCW Employee 2: Maybe it’s French? Sasha D.: That’s not French. SCW Employee 1: Should we toss the form then? Sasha D.: Meh, let him be entered. It’ll be a nice teat for the fans. Marcus V. Lopez: There is no way dat story is real. Sparky: Well something about it was cause you’re in it. {Sparky raises his paw with a sheet of paper up in the air and slams it down on MV’s lap. MV gets a quick look at the SCW Taking Hold of the Flame ad and seeing his name on it before it is blown away. It blows through the air making its travel to Ashlee and it perfectly sits in her lap face up for her to read clear as day. MV watches the whole thing unfold and he immediately jumps off the bench. He darts towards it, but stops after a couple of steps knowing it’s too late. Ashlee looks up at MV with a disappointed face. She gets off the swing and gets Isabella and marches off.} Marcus V. Lopez: Ashlee, No! Sparky: Oh I’m sorry that happened MV. Also I know you said her name a couple of times. I need to remind you about code names. Hers was The Bitch. Marcus V. Lopez: Damn it Sparky dis isn’t a joke. I was actually getting my life back to together. It looked like things were finally working for me. Sparky: Well now that you’re free you can do the battle royal. Marcus V. Lopez: Well I’m still not interested. I’m going to get my life back dat I had before you came back into it. {MV stands there in the middle of the playground when a red dot appearance on his chest. MV notices it and confused by what it is.} Marcus V. Lopez: What is dis? Where did dis dot come from? Sparky: That’s the reason why I came to tell you. Violator Black is in town. He’s been considering a return and wants your spot in the battle royal. Marcus V. Lopez: Well he can have it, he doesn’t have to do dis. Sparky: He also remembers you gut punching Cammy and still hasn’t beat your ass for that. Pretty much the whole he’ll get into the battle royal over your dead body statement. Marcus V. Lopez: What? Dat was an accident and I only did it because you told me to go back and face him, Sparky: I’d probably stop talking and run. Marcus V. Lopez: He’s not going to shoot me in a public playground full of children playing. Even he’s not dat dumb. {Marcus laughs off Violator’s threat and as a few more seconds pass and the dot is still on MV’s chest. He panics and takes off running out of the playground.} Sparky: Run. Run you clever boy. {MV runs out of the park and down the sidewalk. He spins himself around in a daze not sure which why to go. He ends up turning down and alley, but it ends up being a dead end. He turns, but Violator is there to meet him.} Marcus V. Lopez: Hey Violator, long time no see, huh. Ok, look here’s how dis will go down. I’m sorry I punched Cammy it was an accident. You get one shot at me and then you can have my spot in the battle royal and I can go talk to Ashlee dat dis whole thing is a mistake. Violator Black: I can live with that arrangement. I’ve got the black man punch pretty effective. Don’t worry you won’t feel a thing. You can tell Ashlee you were mugged. She’ll feel sorry for you and take you back. No cops through. Don’t need another description of a black guy in New York. Marcus V. Lopez: Yeah dat’s true. Ok, deal. {Sparky suddenly appears next to MV while Violator prepares himself.} Sparky: Come MV you don’t have to do this. You can take him. Well we can take him together. All you got to do is say the word. Marcus V. Lopez: Go away. Violator Black: What you say? Marcus V. Lopez: I wasn’t talking to you. Sparky: Seriously MV, we can totally take him together. I mean sure he laid you out last time with a black man punch and come to think about it. He did knock you out which would be the pay back for Cammy. Whoops, my bad on that. Let me make it up to you. Violator Black: You know MV I know you’re a crazy little guy and all and that’s why I like you. It’s nothing personal either. I just think that it’s time for me to live up to my potential and be the man. You know what I’m saying. Naw, probably don’t. Saw you and Ashlee trying to work things out. Whatever happen to that dancer you had. Mess that one up too. Sparky: Trash talking you now. Let us finish it. {Violator measures MV up and pulls him arm back and fires a punch in the gut. MV doubles over as Violator holds on to him.} Violator Black: Thank MV for the spot. I promise I’ll make you proud. {MV stands back up and looks at Violator. His body now painted in white over his brown skin and a demon’s mouth with teeth around his shoulder. He looks like a demon from some horror anime.} Marcus V. Lopez: I had a chat with Sparky, Violator. He’s getting my spot. Taking Hold of the Flame, the demon will be unleashed. {Violator looks at MV with a “WTF” look. He back pedals away and he stumbles over some trash cans and spills out on the sidewalk. MV walks out of the alley still in demon form. The New Yorkers that walk by just continue on their business and live their New York state of mind. MV turns and walks down the sidewalk leaving Violator as the scene fades.} ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Marcus V. Lopez: Another year has come and Taking Hold of the Flame is here. I still remember my one and only title shot I had against Greg Cherry. I had my trio tournament contract and I called my shot. I had my match against Greg Cherry and dat night I put out everything dat I had against him. I didn’t win dat night, but now every year I try to throw my name in the hat and win this battle royal and maybe get another shot. This year I didn’t think I was going to do it again. The decision of either being there my daughter or my dreams of being the World Champion and I wanted to be there for Isabella, but faith has other plans for me. The wind just blew dat piece of paper to Ashlee and just like dat I lost them. Now it’s no choice, but to do this again. Do this again and fail once more like every other time I’ve done this. It’s never going to change. I’m never going to be World Champion. Marcus V. Lopez: But maybe I won’t be in the battle royal this year. Maybe someone else takes my spot. Maybe “something” else takes my place. Maybe it’s time for SCW to see the other side of MV. Dat side dat you hear about, but never seen before. Maybe it’s time dat the demon comes out and plays with the big boys and girls. Maybe it’s time I unleashed Sparky onto the SCW masses. Taking Hold of the Flame 2016 whatever broadcasting, satellite, streaming service or illegal internet site dat you use make sure it’s tune in the show because dat’s what you’re going to get, a Show. The road to Rise to Greatness is about to get extremely weird. |
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| Team Desire | May 28 2016, 02:31 AM Post #17 |
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SCW's Queen of Queens/The Goddess of Desire
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[align=center] SCW Goddess | Katie Steward | "Her Horsewomen" [/align]OOC: 2 of 2 for the battle royal. |
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| Emerge | May 28 2016, 04:43 AM Post #18 |
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Advanced Member
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Number two from me and the start of a new set of rps for Shaun. Excited to share this...good luck to everyone Taking Hold of the Flame #2 |
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| XdpK | May 28 2016, 07:24 AM Post #19 |
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Kills Unicorns
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Lexi Thotf rp first bits off camera shoots on you know the deal |
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| Greg Cherry | May 28 2016, 09:17 AM Post #20 |
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Member of the Nation of Moderation
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OOC: Takes place before Jake's second. Only thing on camera is my promo. Everything else is off-camera. Enjoy! Monday, May 23, 2016 Pittsburgh, PA Jack told me that he had something for me on Saturday and now here it was Monday and a big pile of nothing had been done. I’m not sure what he wanted me to wait for, but the fact that he wouldn’t even give me a hint was driving me a little crazy…as if I needed the help at this point. It had been two days since I considered…and I need to stress the word considered…attempting suicide. I wasn’t yet pushed to the point of following through with it and I’m thankful that God sent Jack to me at that very moment because if he hadn’t…there’s no telling how far my depression would have pushed me. But he left me on a cliffhanger…and he told me that he was going to try and help me and to trust him. I’ve been very anti-people lately, Jake Starr aside, and this wasn’t really helping Jack’s case. I hadn’t heard from him much in the last two years, but he seemed very adamant about doing something for me after he had heard everything that was going through my mind. It was very much a cry for help…I’m not too proud to admit that. I needed something to get me to the next level because it was clear that I couldn’t do it on my own. So I’m ready to try whatever help that Jack is going to give me…even if it was preceded by the “you’re not going to like it” caveat. I didn’t leave my house all day despite having to get back on the road for SCW soon and my patience was starting to wear thin. Typically, Jack was all about being on time so it seemed rather odd to me that he didn’t show up when he was supposed to…then again, I guess in hindsight, he just said he’d be here Monday and didn’t give me a time. Regardless, I figured it’d be sometime before early evening. At around 2pm, I heard a knock on the door, assuming it was Jack. Cherry: It’s open! Jack came through the door and shut it behind him. Jack: Hey, glad you’re still here. Cherry: Of course I’m still here…you told me two days ago that you had a surprise for me and to wait here. I’ve been waiting at the house until you told me otherwise. I have to get back on the road soon. Jack: Well, I think you’re going to want to delay that trip a little bit. There’s something that you need right now and I brought it here for you. Just stand right here. Jack walked over to the door and motioned for someone to come in. I wasn’t sure what he was doing but he walked over to me and through the door, I saw the one person I never expected to walk into my life ever again… Cherry: Ashley… Ashley: Hi. Cherry: Not to be rude, but can you give Jack and I a minute please? Ashley: Sure. I took Jack into the kitchen, out of earshot of my ex-wife and looked at him, completely bewildered. Cherry: What…in the actual fuck, Jack? Jack: You need this. Cherry: I need to be berated by my ex-wife before I go back out onto the road? You have a real sick sense of humor, you know that? Jack: Greg…I spent about two hours on the phone with Ashley yesterday and she told me a lot of things that I think you need to hear. Cherry: What could she possibly have to tell me? She ripped my heart out and was damn near a large contributing factor to…*points to the gun safe*, you know… Jack: Listen, I know it’s not the easiest of things to have to deal with… Cherry: The easiest of things? Let me tell you something. I’m not sure if she told you, but the last time we talked was over Skype and it was a 30-minute yelling match. I don’t think I can do that right now. Jack: She did tell me…but now there’s a difference. You’re both right here and you have me in the middle. Cherry: I can’t do this. If the gun doesn’t kill me, I’m confident that a heart attack or a stroke as a result of all this stress just might. Jack: Greg, you have to do this. To get past this, you NEED to do this. Cherry: Why? Jack: Do you trust me? And like a dagger, those words pierced through the armor I had protected myself with. I wasn’t ready to speak to Ashley, but Jack was very insistent on it. I’m not sure what this was all about, but he believed he had things under control. I’ve swallowed my pride enough in the last 12 years…might as well grab some water to chug this one down too. Cherry: You owe me. Jack: I don’t think you’ll be saying that after this. Cherry: What are you talking about? Jack: Just get out there and talk with her. Cherry: …Fine. I started to get the sense that there was something up, but unfortunately for me, I wasn’t perceptive enough to tell exactly what it was. I guess I had some answers to get from her. Cherry: Sorry about that. You can sit down. Ashley: Thanks. Cherry: So…how’s Minnesota? Ashley: It’s…there. Cherry: That good, huh? Ashley: It hasn’t exactly been great. Cherry: How are things with Eddie going? You two madly in love? Ashley: …We never were. He and I split up because he was just using me to get back at his ex-fiancée Sienna and…now they’re back together. Cherry: Ah…I’m really not surprised. Eddie has been quite a slimeball. Ashley: I think that’s the first thing we’ve agreed on in a long time. Cherry: So why are you here? Ashley: I needed to tell you something. You probably already know everything that I’m going to tell you, but you need to hear it from me. I fucked up. I don’t know what I was thinking when Eddie’s and my child passed away suddenly, but I thought he needed my comfort and care because of it. I abandoned you and left you to deal with all of this by yourself and took our kids from you because I thought that with them around, Eddie wouldn’t take it as hard… I came to realize that Eddie didn’t give a shit about our child dying. He never cared about me or anything that I thought we had even as just friends…it was all a ploy to get back with Sienna. So I came here to tell you that everything that happened between you and me in the last two years…that wasn’t me. I mean…it was me who did it, but it wasn’t…me. I’m not that person and I should have never abandoned you after you were nearly forced to retire. I have been possibly the world’s shittiest wife to you. Cherry: Ex-wife. Ashley: …That’s something else I didn’t tell you. I never signed divorce papers. Cherry: What do you mean? I had them mailed to me with your signature on the documents. Ashley: …You’re not going to like this. That wasn’t my signature. Cherry: What? Ashley: Eddie forged my signature, making those divorce papers invalid. Cherry: Okay…that doesn’t make sense, but how do you explain the Skype conversation that we had where you essentially justified leaving me as the greatest thing in the universe and that you were so happy with Eddie? Ashley: He put me up to it. I didn’t want to do it but by that point, he had become so irrational in his decision making that I got scared for my life. I did it just to shut him up and get him off my case. Cherry: So, all of this was his doing…not yours. Ashley: Greg, I know it’s hard to believe. I’ll admit that the leaving you and taking the kids to help support Eddie to prevent him from going off the deep end was my doing. However, I didn’t realize how much of a toll it would take on me, the kids and you too. Cherry: You’re right. You have absolutely no idea…because for the last year plus, you’ve abandoned me to live with my former best friend and take my kids away from me. I went back to SCW to fill the void that I had in my life when you all left me and I come to find out that I’m not the same as I used to be. Here it is, three months after I return to SCW, and I can’t beat anyone. I’m a laughingstock and to top it all off, everyone else on the planet Earth abandoned me. You know what that does to a man? Ashley, I had the 9mm out of the gun safe and I had no intention of going to the gun range. It was going to be used in this house and I was going to end it all because nothing in my life was going right…I thank God that Jack just happened to be driving in the neighborhood or this conversation would not be happening. Now, after a year of being gone, you just waltz back into my life like I’ll just take you back with open arms. Ashley, I NEARLY KILLED MYSELF BECAUSE WHEN YOU LEFT, EVERYTHING WENT TO SHIT! Now, I’m scheduled to be in the battle royal, 39 other people that I have to beat and at this rate, I don’t even think I’d last five minutes. It is like the entire world passed me by and left me behind because they thought I was a steaming pile of year-old garbage that deserves to be tossed aside. I’m starting to think they’re right. So thank you for coming by and saying that you’re sorry…but that doesn’t change the fact that nothing you do will ever make up for what you did. At that point, Ashley just stood up, looked at Jack, Jack nodded to her and she walked out the door without saying another word. Jack looked at me with his hands on his hips. Jack: What the hell was that? Cherry: Jack, I’m not going to let her just come back here and think that everything is going to be okay by a simple apology. It’s going to take much more than that for me to forgive her. Jack: What will it take? Cherry: I don’t know, but I can’t deal with her right now. Jack, I appreciate you doing what you tried to do, but it didn’t work. Now, I’m going to go into the battle royal, I’m probably going to lose and I should just walk away because I have no fight left in me and I have nothing to fight for. The SCW Championship in Pittsburgh is not enough for me to keep going. I can’t do it. Just then, there was a knock at the door and Jack went over to go answer it. He opened the door and looked outside. Jack: So you have nothing left to fight for? Cherry: That’s what I said. Jack: Hold that thought. Annoyed, I turned my head to look at Jack and then, my mouth dropped to the floor. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Shane/Isabella: Daddy! They ran towards me and I towards them and I hugged them tight and started sobbing uncontrollably. In all of this, the children never had done anything wrong to me and I missed them during their time away with Ashley. I hugged them for what felt like it was never long enough. I’m sure it wasn’t longer than 5 or ten minutes but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I hugged and kissed them and told them I loved them and meant everything I said. In that moment, everything was right with the world. It’s much different when I’m on the road because I knew I could come home and see them but for the last year and a half, it had been hell. I never drove to Minnesota because I had thought at the time that Ashley wanted nothing to do with me. It made me wonder if I had judged Ashley too soon as I looked up at her in between tears and she had tears of her own in her eyes. My kids ran over and hugged Jack too since they hadn’t seen him in a while and the three of them went out to the car to get their clothes and whatnot. Ashley walked over to me and sat beside me. Cherry: So that’s what Jack meant when he asked me to trust him, huh? Ashley: Yes it is. I knew that you wouldn’t really be happy to see me but you needed to see our kids. And…after everything you told me, I think you needed to see them that much more. Cherry: I did. I can’t tell you how much I missed them. Ashley: I know you did. Greg, I’m sorry for all of this. We’ve been married for 10 years and as far as I know, that divorce was never officially recognized. I know it’s a long shot, but…can we move back in? And there it was…after months of torture from not spending any time with my family or friends, the pain had ended. It wasn’t going to be the easiest thing for me to talk with Ashley like we had before and I still had many more questions, but I’m not going to pretend like it wasn’t music to my ears to have my family back. I went through that once on a bet and I’m pretty sure this time was worse. I never want to go through that again. Cherry: Of course. You have no idea how much I need you all here. And I hope you don’t take this as I want to get away from all of this right now, but I need to get back on the road tonight. Ashley: Jack told me. I wanted to be here yesterday but I didn’t have everything together. Cherry: I just want you to know that when I come back…we still have a lot of talking to do. This isn’t all just magically fixed. Thank you though for bringing Shane and Bella. That did mean a lot. Ashley: Can you at least promise me that we’re going to try to work this out? Cherry: I promise that we can try. I can’t guarantee anything past that…but we can just hope for the best. I stayed the night and decided that I would try and catch a flight to Ottawa for Breakdown the next morning or as early as I could get one. It was a whirlwind of emotions for me in the last three days but the roller coaster ride was only beginning. Like I told Ashley, even with her bringing our kids to see me for the first time in a long time doesn’t magically fix everything. It’s going to take time, but the fact that she is all in is a positive. As much as I was starting to like the flirtation with Jessica, she stopped talking to me for some unbeknownst reason. That said, I am looking forward to the rebuilding process and maybe, I can be happy again. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Friday, May 27, 2016 Toronto, Ontario, Canada Breakdown had come and gone and the emotion of what happened earlier in the week with Ashley and our kids was still with me. I had doubted a couple of times during the week whether or not it was the right decision. I kept convincing myself that it was right despite what other people might say. But right now, my focus could not be on them. It had to be on the battle royal and I held my camera in my hand and realized that what I had done before wasn’t going to work. This wasn’t the old guard of SCW where I was at the top of the pack and I had to fight like never before to get back to a place where Greg Cherry was, in fact, the best this place had ever seen. Cherry: You know, I was going to start off with giving a history lesson about everything I’ve done and where I came from and all that. But the fact is that if you don’t already know the story of Greg Cherry, that’s your own damn fault. The history of Greg Cherry is a very important part of the history of SCW, but that’s all it is…history. And it’s been said that those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it, but the argument can be made that those who do learn from history can be destined to repeat it. I’m aware that I haven’t been the greatest wrestler in the world upon my return back at the Trios Tournament and only collecting a win here and a win there. I know that Shaun Cruze has gotten the upper hand on me every single time we’ve faced off. I get all of that. But there’s something that I never used to believe that I do now…the past doesn’t dictate the future. And that’s coming from me, someone who made a career and a living on reminding people what I did and why I was great, but I’m sick of thinking in reverse. Tonight, I stand in front of you knowing that my career accomplishments aren’t going to help me win this battle royal on Sunday, because my accomplishments won’t be in the match…I will be. So for those who are lauding about that they deserve their championship match or that they deserve to be in the main event of Rise to Greatness, then all I say to them is win this match and you’re right. If you lose this match, then you don’t deserve a damn thing and I’ll say that to include myself. If I lose this battle royal and odds say that I will, then I don’t deserve to be in the main event challenging for the SCW World Championship. But that’s the funny thing. I never cared about odds. I never cared about whether or not somebody else thought I deserved a shot. I’m not here to convince anybody of anything. I’m not going to sit here and be somebody’s podcast discussion topic on whether or not Greg Cherry after all these years can still go. People’s opinions of me don’t matter. When it comes to this battle royal, if I don’t deserve to be SCW Champion, then throw me out. For me, this is personal. Not like I have a vendetta against any specific person in this match, because honestly you could randomly select any 39 people on this planet for me to go against and this match would mean the exact same to me. I have stated numerous times in the past that I came back so that I could win the SCW Championship one more time and hold that championship gold when SCW came to the city of Pittsburgh at least once in my career. I tried the Trios Tournament and that didn’t work. I tried defeating Shaun Cruze and that didn’t work. Long story short, if I don’t win Taking Hold of the Flame, that dream is dead. I’m 29 years old, I have almost 12 years in this industry and there’s no telling how long my body will hold up when it comes to this. I am treating this like it’s my last shot ever to have a shot to become SCW Champion because it very well may be. You have everybody in this battle royal talking about why they WON’T lose as if it’s a forgone conclusion...I’m here telling you why I CAN’T lose. If I were to lose this Sunday, where do I go from here? Possible “dream match” scenario? Maybe a lower ranked championship match? Perhaps I’m not even on the Rise to Greatness card at all. Honestly, I don’t know what the future holds if I don’t win and I can’t look at it from that perspective. I only had one thing that I wanted to accomplish when I came back…and if I can’t do that, I shouldn’t be here. There is no consolation prize. I’m not going to be gifted a shot as some sort of lifetime achievement award. I don’t have that luxury. It’s not like I’ll have some sort of number one contender’s match. I can’t rely on if the Board decides to do another Fatal Fortunes and who knows when the next Trios Tournament will be. This is something that I have to do and I have to do it now. If you want to know how much this means to me…I would be willing to trade everything that I’ve ever done in my career, the championships, the Hall of Fame inductions, the five star matches…everything…for just one opportunity to be SCW World Heavyweight Champion in Pittsburgh. It may sound stupid to some people and you may not understand, but you don’t have to understand it and I don’t have to explain it to you. It is all I ever wanted out of my career and for me, that’s all I need to know. So you take the nearly insurmountable odds that I face, the fact that I’ve never come close to winning a 40-person battle royal, the fact that I’ve been a complete and utter failure upon my return, the fact that I’m not even at 40:1 odds of winning this thing. Seriously, check the Sports Betting sites. It would be kind to call me a long shot at this point. The fans, the “insiders”, the “experts”, they all have their opinion of who is going to win and who “deserves” to win it more than anybody else. To all of those people, who I’m sure left my name out of any conversation they had, they need to listen up. I’m aware that I haven’t been the success story I hoped for, I’m aware that 2016 hasn’t been a shining year of my life, but the year isn’t over. I know that I won’t have the luxury of being in my hometown in Pittsburgh. The luxury of drawing the last number in that contest isn’t even there since Shilo Valiant won that spot on Breakdown. The advantages that I had in 2010 when I won are completely eliminated, but do you think that those are the only reasons I won? Just in case your memory is short, you forget that I eliminated three former SCW Champions in succession en route to victory. Shilo, Mr. Final Entrant himself, was the last of those three. But I swore I would not dwell on the past because that was then. Honestly, the past is irrelevant to me now. What I used to do doesn’t win me matches now. What Greg Cherry used to be doesn’t translate into this new generation of Supreme Championship Wrestling. So where does that leave me? Conventional wisdom says I enter midway through the match, last a little bit and then get tossed out by someone who has no business being in the same league as me. If this were any other night on SCW programming, I could believe that with the way things are going. But it’s not going to happen Sunday. It can’t happen Sunday. All of these other 39 competitors are fighting for a title opportunity. Well, guess what? I’M FIGHTING FOR MY DAMN LIFE! EVERY SINGLE PERSON IN THIS MATCH HAS NO IDEA WHAT HELL I’VE BEEN PUT THROUGH! AND I’M SURE NOBODY CARES BECAUSE YOU’RE ALL SOULLESS BASTARDS WHO ARE INFATUATED WITH YOUR OWN DESIRES! I’M TELLING YOU ALL RIGHT NOW, I AM THE ONLY THING THAT IS REAL ABOUT THIS COMPANY! WHETHER YOU LOVE ME OR YOU HATE ME, I AM THE ONLY PERSON IN THIS BUSINESS IN THAT RING OR OUT OF IT THAT KNOWS THAT THIS BUSINESS ISN’T JUST WHAT HAPPENS IN BETWEEN THE ROPES! THIS BUSINESS FUELS MY WAY OF LIFE AND MY SUCCESS OR FAILURE DICTATES WHAT HAPPENS IN IT! THAT’S WHY ANYBODY ELSE IN THIS MATCH WHO THINKS THEY CAN WIN WILL GO HOME TO THEIR PICTURE PERFECT LIVES WHERE THEY ARE THE GREATEST AT EVERYTHING, NOTHING EVER GOES WRONG AND THEY ARE THE FACE OF THE COMPANY! ME? I LIVE IN REALITY, WHERE NOTHING IS A FOREGONE CONCLUSION, LIFE ISN’T PERFECT AND YOU HAVE TO BUST YOUR ASS JUST TO BE A FAILURE, BUST YOUR ASS TWICE AS HARD TO GET SOME MODICUM OF SUCCESS AND DAMN NEAR RUIN YOUR PERSONAL LIFE JUST TO EXPERIENCE SOME JOY AT WORK! … I have gone through hell since I left SCW in-ring competition in 2014. I’ll spare you the details, but long story short, if I didn’t come back to SCW this past February, I may not have even been around to have this conversation with you. My life has been agonizing the last two years and nobody sent me any well wishes, or good thoughts or sent good vibes or prayed for me or anything like that. Everybody just went on with their lives and like every other time just tossed me aside like I wasn’t worth a damn to them. Well, this Sunday at Taking Hold of the Flame, I face off against 39 people who for all intents and purposes represent those that never cared about me, that were only in it for themselves and could give a damn less if I was alive or dead. I’ve never been here for you. I’ve always been here for me and my family. If that can’t get through your thick skulls, nothing will. But mark my words, I will walk into that battle royal on Sunday, I will crush your dreams, not give a damn about what it does to you, and the only way to do that and go to Rise to Greatness to reclaim the championship that I haven’t seen in over five years…is to be the first person in SCW history to win the Taking Hold of the Flame battle royal twice. And there is nothing on this planet, in this solar system, in this galaxy or in this universe…that can stop me from doing just that. Because this Sunday, for all 39 of you and for the millions of fans around the world, YOUR life is the pits and all of you can just deal with it. I shut the camera off and just sat back on the bed for a minute. I knew that if nothing else, if Jake and I were in the ring at the same time, it’d be an insurance policy but that said, it’s a battle royal and you can’t trust anyone, even my only friend in SCW right now. Jake and I have been through hell and back and I really don’t want to open up that can of worms again. We brutalize each other when we’re on opposite sides of the fence. Now that we’re on the same side, we can do it to anybody else. And honestly, if we made the final two, it would be an honor…to toss Jake over the top rope. He knows my competitive spirit and I know his. If we’re the final two, I’ll be happy either way, moreso if I win. I’m sure he was wondering how everything was so I had him meet me at a local bar in Toronto. I figured it’d be a good place for us to talk and catch up and…I wasn’t planning on telling him the whole story with what happened. I’m sure in due time I will but now doesn’t seem like the right time. It’s way too heavy of a topic and we need to be fully focused on Sunday. I saw that he beat me there and was sitting at the bar. I must have startled him when I came up behind him. Jake: …Didn’t hear you come in. Cherry: I wasn’t really trying to make a grand entrance or anything. The conversation was good. Jake and I were on the same page and it seemed like we were unified going into this Sunday. I hope he and I don’t draw too far apart and maybe we’ll luck out and get 38 and 39 respectively. Regardless, it’s nice to have someone in my professional life just as it’s nice to have someone in my personal life again. Things are starting to change for the better for me. It’s about damn time. And…scene. |
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| James Evans | May 28 2016, 10:23 AM Post #21 |
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I'll Probably Quit Soon
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OOC: I struggled in writing all of this. I took some out then added some in, before taking more out. I ended up putting two rps together, due to the rp limit mix up. The handlers of Ace and Amy appear with permission. The scenes with Ace are all in James' head of course but were very fun to write. The scene with Amy is building towards something the handler and I have discussed. The last portion of the CD left me unsettled as it kind of took on a life of its own, but the end product came out the way it was meant to, at least to the best of my abilities. The promo was fun as it was straight and to the point, something I've lost sight of doing for awhile now. Whoever wins this bitch will have earned it as it seems we are all putting our best out there as usual this time of year. Good luck and to those who read this, except for Olek, I hope you enjoy. [align=center] C O U L D N ' T THINK OF A T I T L E[/align] |
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| Syren | May 28 2016, 10:33 AM Post #22 |
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So Totally Awesome!
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Continuing the story from last time. To view only the promo then click Nice Girl’s Finish Last. As always the scene part is "off-camera" while the vlog is "on-camera". Enjoy. ![]() The Syren Song: Verse 248 “So, um… I’m not really sure what happens now” |
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| Ravyn | May 28 2016, 10:36 AM Post #23 |
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Advanced Member
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A story about a young woman struggling to cope with the situation she’s gotten herself in. The very special returning guest star appears with permission. Enjoy. ![]() Ravyn Taylor's Diary March 15th 2016 |
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| Winter_Crystal | May 28 2016, 10:45 AM Post #24 |
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The Snow Queen
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OOC: Slight format change due to using a different processor. Take place after the latest Breakdown. [align=center]NECROPHOBIA! --By the Grace of Lady Valiant-- “The Poison is the Cure”[/align] I held the report in my mind, reading what little I could understand as I sat in the room, my other hand holding my jester mask in case people were put off by my scars. It had taken a week for the blood tests to come back – probably the longest week I ever experienced. Shilo: Delayed? I looked up the doctor as he stood there. Doctor Phillips always wore the same outfit. Like a uniform. Long white doctor’s coat and dark blue scrubs. Like on that television show. Phillips: That’s what I think. He said with a note of hope. Personally, I couldn’t feel it. It had been a week since I had been infected with the McDiarmid virus – the real, scientific name of it I couldn’t even pronounce – and after the initial week, I had begun to wonder what had been going on. It had been one thing if I had begun to feel sick. Hell, part of me had been terrified that I was going to die then and there like several of the reported cases across the various gangs in Toronto. But when I had felt nothing after the first few days – when wrestling itself had not been a challenge on me (cardiovascular wise – you try fighting Shaun Cruze and not get winded. Not possible. The guy is like an ox.), I had been left wondering the classic “WTF”. Shilo: But I do have it. Phillips nodded. Phillips: You tested positive. It’s in your bloodstream. Shilo: Then why aren’t I feeling any of the symptoms? Phillips: Well, how can I explain it? Shilo: Simply, please. I’m not exactly well-versed in matters medical. Phillips: Alright. He took a deep breath before speaking. Phillips: In the other cases that the Empress has sent me (I kept forgetting this guy was Marina’s go-to Doctor for the Empress – in fact, most of the people I now associated with in Toronto were part of Marina’s empire, much in the same way the Underground had helpers). And in those cases, the virus attacking the cells was doing so an amazing rate. But with yours… The virus cells are…slower. Shilo: Slower? Phillips: They seem to be attacking your cells at a decelerated rate – or perhaps that is the normal rate and the ones the Empress had been sending were accelerated. Shilo: So you’re saying I got infected with a normal strand of the virus? Not some super form? Phillips: In simple terms, yes. I could not help but smirk at that. That smart Rameses. Hard to believe I doubted him. He could have shot me with the weaponized version of the virus and I’d be dead within a week (maybe a day as some cases had been). Instead, he had deliberately given me my best chance. Now, I was like him. Like Lester. Infected with the original virus but still capable to do something about it. Shilo: But there’s no way to know how long I have? Phillips sighed and shook his head. Phillips: It’s happening slow, but it is still happening. Your body is still being broken down by the virus. Yes, it will take longer to happen, but… I nodded glumly. Shilo: It will still happen. Phillips: The team is working day and night to find a cure, Mr. Valiant. Shilo: Nevermind that. What about the stages? What will that be like. The doctor took a deep breath as he looked down at his charts. Phillips: Well, from past cases, you won’t know it’s happening until you reach stage three. You won’t feel anything till then either. That is when the clear symptoms will manifest. Shilo: What are they? Phillips: Cardiovascular issues, intermittent loss of strength and concentration, weakened immunity. Your body is basically going to start shutting down. Believe me, you’ll know when it happens. Shilo: And what then? Phillips: Then, it’s essential you come back here. Because soon after is when the virus will become contagious. Shilo: The weaponized version. Phillips nodded. Phillips: Think of it as the virus reaching its full adult stage, capable of travel and infection. At least through blood stream. Shilo: So no shooting my blood into anyone? Damn, doc, where’s the fun now! We were gonna do a “Walking Dead” murder mystery next month! Phillips offered a courtesy laugh before putting his chart down. Shilo: So how long do you THINK I have? Phillips: It wouldn’t be fair to give a guess. All we can do now is tell if you have it. The rate it is going, how strong you are to fighting it – that’s all up to you. The third stage could hit you tomorrow or in weeks or months – maybe even years. Like Lester, I thought. Phillips: But it will take you at some point unless we find a cure. I couldn’t be mad. I knew I should be. It was like a bad sci-fi story, but I couldn’t be mad. I had anticipated this the moment I had realized Rameses involvement with the Dead Hands. And Rameses had done all he could to help me. Still, I had to wonder if he had run to Brother Grimm and gotten his cure. And if he did… I shook my head. No, Rameses was a fool. If Marina’s team of doctors had failed to find a cure at this point, there was no way a gang – which had been nothing but thugs and idiots before Lester had given them the virus weapon – would have it. Which meant that that Grimm had been lying to the poor boy. Of course he had. Grimm was a product of the Garden and of Ian Ryper. And the one thing I remembered most about the former Death Merchant was that he never worked too directly. His plans were always elaborate – working behind the scenes. Brother Grimm was not as brilliant as Ryper had been, but still, the concept was still there. The biggest difference was that Grimm thought he was some angel of death for a god. Shilo: Anything else? The doctor shook his head. Shilo: Well… I begun to say, adjusting my black t-shirt and blue jeans. Shilo: Keep me informed – or the Empress, I don’t really know how that works. Phillips: We will. It was all that needed to be said. Excusing myself, I was out of the hospital in less than five minutes and walking down the hot streets of Toronto. Well, it was hot to me – you take a Canadian and put him 20+ degrees Celsius weather, yeah that’s hot for most of us. Pulling out my cellphone (keeping my mask in my other hand), I dialled Marina’s cell number and was relieved when I heard her voice. Marina: How was it? Shilo: Actually, good. Whatever Rameses hit me with, it’s not a weaponized version. Marina: So we have time. Shilo: Yes, but we’re not sure how much. It could be weeks or months. Marina: Better than days or hours. I could agree with her on that. Despite my plans (which Marina still had no clue about), I did not like the idea of dying at this point. It would be a waste. Waste for my family, for my work in SCW, for everything. I could die later but not right now. Shilo: Everything okay on the Empire front. Marina: We’re keeping tabs on the Dead Hands but they’ve kept pretty quiet. Shilo: Probably waiting to see where my corpse will turn up. Marina: Please don't talk like that. I could hear the plead in her voice. Marina: We’ll figure this out. We’ll find a cure for you and for Rameses and Lester. I paused, not wanting to say anything. I couldn’t say anything really. I couldn’t tell her the truth – that a cure was counter-intuitive. I couldn’t tell her any of that. Instead, I merely laughed it off. Shilo: I know you will. You saved me in the Blood Labyrinth – you’ll find a way to save us again. Marina: Shilo… Her voice trailed off. Shilo: Marina…Phillips did say that if the virus continued into stage three that it could become contagious on some level. If that happens – I think… Marina: No! You are not disappearing again! I am not going to let you run away to die alone! Shilo: Marina – if I infect you or Gwynplaine or Memphis – Marina: Enough! Youre not going to infect me because we’re going to find a cure for you before it gets to this “stage three”. I took a breath, hating the heat outside. I could already feel myself start to sweat. Marina: Just focus on staying healthy. Have you called SCW and asked for a sabbatical? Shilo: A sabbatical? I can’t do that, Marina, it’s Rise to Greatness season. Marina: Are you insane? It could make things worse! What if you get sicker in the middle of the states? What then? Shilo: Marina – the doctor said I would now when the time was to be worried. That I would definitely know. Marina: So what? You’re just going to pretend nothing is wrong till either you “know” or we find a cure? Shilo: That’s pretty much the size of it. Marina: Shilo! Shilo: Marina! I don’t know if me shouting at her stopped her or if it just surprised her. But I powered on. Shilo: Last in Ottawa…I wrestled. I actually wrestled – to win! Marina: So? Shilo: And I won! Okay? I beat three really good superstars and I’m- I stopped for a moment. It was like the night and all its implications had just hit me. Oh my god kind of thing. In my mind, I realized that I had beaten three other superstars – one a former world champion, the other a veteran legend and the other the most recent winner of the damn Trios Tournament! – I had beaten them all and had been given the 40th spot in the royale. I would be the last man entering that competition and the man with the best advantage. Marina: And you’re what? Shilo: And I’m feeling amazing. Marina, I haven’t felt this good in years. This driven… I knew what she was thinking – it was an old idiom. The concept of “the star burning its brightest just before it burns out”. Well, was that so hard to believe? After being infected, the first thought in my head was leaving my family behind. True, I had some good money saved up from my career in SCW that could help them but Marina had the real fortune thanks to being the Empress. Besides missing me, what real good was I to them? And SCW? Well, they had made it clear how “much” they “respected” me. Even with Chad Evans actually paying attention to me, it wasn’t like they would really care if I suddenly disappeared or died. But my career had been my second thought after being infected. The desire to end things on my terms. That if I was going to go out, I wanted to go out with a bang. Fighting Holliday, Cruze and Lyman – well, it had been the first time I really wanted to win on my own. Tapping out to Ravyn, using a chair on Amy – I hadn’t cared about winning against those two. Everyone had already wanted me to lose because I was the bad guy again, so what did it matter? Neither of those matches was going to get me anywhere so what was the point? Last Breakdown – I wanted to win. There was a prize to be won…and I won it. For the first time in two years, Shilo Valiant (fight with a do or die attitude – nothing to lose) had actually won something in SCW. Shilo: I think…I think I could win the royale this year. Marina: Shilo! Your health- Shilo: Marina! It’s here in Toronto- Marina: It is? Shilo: Yes! And- wait, did you see Breakdown last night? Marina: No. Shilo: Okay, then. Marina, I won the 40th spot. The last spot. All I have to do is go out there and beat whatever remaining number of superstars are left! Probably less than 10. Marina: And you honestly think you can? I was quiet for a moment. If she had asked me that question two weeks ago, I would have said no. That it was a huge waste of time. But that Shilo hadn’t beaten four other people. Hadn’t stood tall at the end of Breakdown for the first time in two years – wasn’t a winner like he was last night. Shilo: Yes I can. It felt all so real then. The hope, the passion. For so long, I had wanted to be back in the main-event picture. Be back in in the spotlight like before. Where it was fun, where I could do stuff rather than sit in the back and “wait my turn”. But Breakdown had given me something that had been missing for the last two years. Hope. I actually, as I spoke to Marina, meant every word. I felt I could win the royale, even if it was against someone like Ravyn Taylor and Zoe Sperling or against the unstoppable Red Rayne. Rayne was starting at the very start of the competition. She was tough – but to do what I did in 2013? No, not against me. No one could. Not if I was waiting on the other side for them. No, call it luck or “unfairness” but I could not deny how blessed I was for this one night. Any other night and I might just fail like so many other times before. But here everything was: Taking Hold of the Flame was being held in my hometown. In an arena that I knew very well. I had defeated Gable Winchester years ago in the Air Canada Centre to become the United States Champion for a second time. It was Toronto that I had emerged from Rise to Greatness X as the World Champion after a year of struggling. Despite myself, I could not help but feel the almost destined way that everything had lined up. Add that I was the fortieth man – the last – and add that the biggest threat to me was going to start at the beginning of the match and, if there was any luck left – any additional threats would be called in first to participate. Shilo: I really think I can win this, Marina. I can win this and get back to Rise to Greatness. I paused, my mind jumping back to the last time Marina and I had even celebrated Rise to Greatness together. Shilo: Remember Rise to Greatness X? Marina: Probably not the same way you do, Shilo. I lost the United States title and began to suspect I was pregnant. Shilo: Wow. Damper. There was a short laugh from Marina before she spoke again. Marina: But I remember being so proud of you. Shilo: You were? Marina: Of course I was! You had worked so hard to overcome your accident, all the therapy and coming up short in other opportunities. To see you make it past the royale and then to win the title back – it was perfect. I nodded. Rise to Greatness X had been the culmination of a year of therapy, both physical and psychological. Of being forced to accept the appearance of my face and to move on past it and the pain. The hardest part had been accepting that I would never look normal again. That I would never look like… Well, like me… Again. RTG X had been the prize and result of all that hard work. That year – despite its flaws – had easily been the best of my career. And I missed it. Since returning to SCW two years ago, I had missed the spotlight. Missed the challenges, missed the fun. Missed everyone actually being entertained by me. Turning my back on them – becoming the villain again – it had been the first time in years I genuinely felt a reaction from the audience – from SCW. And if I were honest with myself, all I wanted was to feel like I did at Rise to Greatness X. Just one more time. And if I was going to die from this virus – this would be the only chance I had. Shilo: I’d give anything to feel that way again, Marina. That’s why I have to do this. Marina: I…Alright. She finally said, earning a sigh of relief from me. Marina: But the minute something goes wrong, you come straight home or to the hospital. Shilo: I promise. There was a moment of silence as I continued to walk down the streets of downtown Toronto. I walked past the Air Canada Centre and quickly glanced at it, feeling the almost surreal emotion of what was to come. Shilo: Any suggestions? Marina: Suggestions? Shilo: Yeah. I mean, what do I say? What do I tell the SCW guys? I probably only got one promo in me, so what should l do? She was quiet for a moment before she answered me. Marina: Remember when you were silent? And only wore that smiling mask? Shilo: Yeah? Marina: Everyone was freaked out by you. They couldn’t tell if you were in pain or if you were laughing or anything. You scared them. I smiled at that. I remembered that. For the majority of the year, I had not said a word on SCW television. Even Syren, one of the greatest in SCW, had been thrown off by the “Silent Showman” gimmick. Marina: When I first began as Empress, no one believed that I could do it. I was alone, pregnant and had the world against me. I quietly cursed myself for putting her in such a position when I had cast her out of the Kings of Shadows and the Underground. Marina: I had to reinvent myself. Make them obey me. Hence why I created the Empress look. Shilo: The red eyes. Marina: Yes. I had to be as intimidating as I looked so that they would fall in line and not try and destroy what little I had. Shilo: And it worked. They all obey you. Marina: But that is what you need to do. You need to make them fear you – to have reason to see you as a threat. If they fear you, they will either obey or… Her voice trailed off but I knew the answer. Shilo: They’ll fuck up. (Quickly) Marina, I have to go – I just had an idea. Marina: What? Where- Shilo: I’ll tell you later. Trust me! I love you. I hung up before she could reply and suddenly veered left when I saw the entrance to one of the subway stations underground. Quickly, I figured out my route before jumping on the nearest subway, my mind racing as I held my jester mask in my hand. Fear…now that was an entertaining little tool that I was just dying to use… ________________________ 2 hours later I watched him from the shadows as he walked around the room. He had just finished a sermon of some kind. It had been easy to sneak in with the crowd of followers, all just begging to be part of Brother Grimm’s “humble family” as he had called it. I had watched him for twenty minutes before sneaking away to where he and I had first met months ago (his throne room, it had been called). Looking to the side, I spotted the large chair he still had. Tacky as shit, if you asked me. But it belonged to a man currently wearing a large top hat, skull cane, skull gloves and tattoos all over his face and arms. Wasn’t REALLY surprised that his taste didn’t line up with my own. Looking down, I spotted the dragon tattoo on my left arm (a reminder of my time in the tenebrae and the vicious animal that lurked in my soul). It was the only tattoo I had left. The others, I had removed in the past months in an attempt to reinvent myself. To try and find an identity without the kings of Shadows and the Underground. But the dragon, Vile, had stayed and I was grateful for that. I needed that persona now. Shilo: Grimm. My voice whispered but was loud enough to carry through the room as I watched the dark-skinned leader of the Dead Hands spin around. Grimm: Who calls me? Is that you, my God? Shilo (slowly): No…it’s not your “God”. It’s someone else entirely. I was slow, trying to keep my voice cold and methodical. Grimm: Are you one of his followers – his angels? Like Rameses? My eyes narrowed at the mention of my son-in-law. Shilo: No. Did you honour your word to him? Did you give him his cure? I saw Grimm laugh as he looked around the room. He truly had no idea where I was heading. One of the tricks I learned in haunting SCW was how to throw my voice. Even with the mask on, it was not a difficult task. Grimm: There is no cure to give. Shilo: So…you lied to an angel of your God. Grimm: I lied to a being pretending to be my God! I do not accept imitators! I do not praise false gods! I chuckled at that. Shilo: I see – well…perhaps that is why I am here. I said before slowly stepping out of the shadows and sitting on his throne just as he turned around to see me perched there. Grimm: Ahh! Shilo Valiant! I see Rameses lied when he said he had done the task and killed you. I tilted my head at the man. Shilo: Oh no, he succeeded quite well. I am infected with your weapon just like he is. I saw Grimm’s eyes widen at this news. Grimm: You carry the disease? Shilo: Yes, I do, Grimm. I said, standing up to my feet. Shilo: And yet, here I stand. Unaffected. Untouched. Not one mark or sign that I am so poisoned. Grimm: You’re lying! You would be dead if you were infected! Shilo: Oh? Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out the form that Phillip had given me, the diagnosis of my condition. I only threw one piece of it at Grimm. The one that said I had tested positive for McDarmid disease. Slowly, the leader of the Dead Hands picked up the note and read it, hi hands starting to shake as he realized the truth. Grimm: Impossible! You should be dead! Shilo: Yes, I suppose I should. But you see, you can’t kill someone like me, Grimm. Grimm: Someone…like you? Once more I tilted my head as I saw him approach me – approach his throne – slowly. Shilo: Oh come now, boy. You’re a religious man. Did you not say to me months ago how you had a god? How you had a power greater than you that you spoke with? Grimm stopped for a moment and nodded his head. Shilo: And what does it say in that religion of yours about “the enemy of God”? Grimm: The unfaithful? The unclean? Shilo: Ooo, you’re getting warm. I said, standing up to my full height and walking down the few steps to stand level with him. Grimm: The sinful – the hated. I could feel the fear rolling off him in waves as he begun to put the pieces together. I could finally understand how Marina felt whenever she donned the “mask” of the Empress – it was the same as how I donned the mask of the Clown Prince in SCW. To use fear as a tool…it was empowering. And there was only one way I knew Grimm’s fear would lead him. Grimm: AHH! He swung at me with his fist, followed by another. He was a leader of the Dead Hands, sure, but he was a rookie in fighting. Compared to me, who had fought ultimate fighters and martial arts trainees, this guy was a joke! I grabbed his first punch and blocked before grabbing the arm of the second punch and flipping him over, causing him to fall on the floor in a heap and a groan. Shilo: Figured it out yet? He merely groaned. With a smile, I lowered myself down, still on my feet as I looked over him. Shilo: No? Maybe this will help. Slowly, I pulled my mask off, revealing the scarred face and eyes (one white and one blue) staring down at him. Grimm: NO!!!! He screamed out in fear – and I’ll admit, it felt good to see this fraud of a leader crumple before me. Better than good. It felt fucking amazing. Grimm: The Morningstar… Lucifer- For a moment, I was reminded at how I had used that name before in SCW before I had discovered my true move set. Still…it was fun to have irony here as well. Shilo: Hello, Grimm. Glad to see you know who I am. Grimm: The devil – the enemy of the lord God. Shilo: Oh yes. And I have frightened your God off. That is why you haven’t seen or heard from him in so long. Because I frightened him off. And then you sent his angel after me, didn’t you? Grimm: I… Shilo: Fool. Did you really think your mortal weapon could hurt me? Who do you think infected your “God” in the first place?! I was lying. Damn I was lying like it was the end of the world, but I had to. Fear was needed. He needed to believe in what I said. Shilo: I did, Grimm. And I’ve enjoyed watching you destroy clan after clan – but unfortunately, you tried to take me down. Grimm: I didn’t know- Shilo: Ignorance is no excuse! I howled, reaching out to grab his throat, squeezing hard. He struggled in my grasp but he was too terrified to really fight back. For some reason, for a moment, I thought of two people. Red Rayne, who would probably be turned on by what I was doing and also Amy Chastaine – imagining it was her or Konrad Raab or Syren that I was choking the life out of. People in my way. People I wanted gone so I could get back my spotlight – get my life back. Shilo: Now…you are going to listen to me because this is not going to be pleasant for you. Now that your virus is inside me, I’m not going to destroy it. I know you have no cure. No, so I am going to let this virus grow inside me until it is the deadly weapon you used on those many people. Then… Slowly, I trailed a finger down his cheek. Shilo: Then I’m going to come back here. I am going to find you and I’m going to infect you and every single person that stands with you. I am going to unleash the plague on you, Grimm…until all of the Dead Hands are just that…. (Low whispering to scare the shit out of him) Dead. He quivered and shook beneath me but, bless his pathetic little heart if he wasn’t trying to stop himself from pissing himself. Grimm: The lord shall stop you. Shilo: Heh heh heh…HA HA HA! Your “God” is dead, Grimm. Just like you are. Was all I said before smashing my mask against his face. The mask broke in two pieces and Grimm’s body went limp, slipping into unconscious. I was on my feet immediately, running out of the room and back into the shadows, the way I had entered. Shilo: Now…it’s your move Grimm. Fear had played its hand here…I would give Grimm time to play the next move. Besides…I had other things to do in Toronto while I waited. Spreading a little fear in time for the spring season… Shilo: Oh…this is going to be interesting… ________________________ The camera opens up to a long forgotten sight. Before the eyes of all that view it stands an abandoned carnival. There are rusty chains attached to swings, there are shattered fibreglass clown statues, some with cracks on their faces while others are missing whole body parts. There are rides like the tilt-a-whirl that have not seen use in what appears to be years. Many of the once bright colours of paint have faded to mere smears amongst dirty surfaces. There are abandoned flyers hanging on the walls, some whole and some in pieces, as well as on the floor, to mat it along with the crumpled leaves of the trees that dare grow in this graveyard of fun. Yet, as the stock of this place of decay is taken in, a sinister laugh is heard echoing through the space. It starts off low, barely audible, but that soon changes, growing into a laugh that echoes hauntingly throughout – from the ratted patches that make up the big-top tent to the barely working few lights that manage to illuminate this grave. Duh Duh Duhna Duhna Duh Duh Duh…. The voice sings – the clear tune being the classic “Circus Theme Song”. The voice sings and sings it as the camera focuses on a familiar jester mask, grinning as it rests along the shaft of a rusty, old cannon used for firing people great distances. The mask, with its black smile and dead eyes, is unmistakable and as the voice grows louder, a black gloved hand scoops it up, holding it in his fingers. Are you paying attention now? The voice asks crisply as the wind blows. The camera itself moves back to take the figure in, his back to the camera. Slowly, he turns around and before the world of watchers stands none other than the only man in SCW that could be home in such a place. Shilo Valiant. Unmasked, he wears a crimson red shirt under his long coat of black leather. Where do I begin? He grins with a tilt of his head, the scars on his face on full display and Shilo unable to care less about that. Perhaps I should start talking about the royale that I am going to win. Or maybe I should talk about the most recent developments on Breakdown… Or maybe…yes, maybe I’ll talk about how I made Amy Chastaine my little bitch. Without remorse, Shilo releases a laugh that echoes in his playground. Oh, poor Amy. Wanting to talk about morals and fair play and how SCW is diseased with bad people and bad things. How Shilo was unfair and SCW should band together against people like him. A very pretty story – a lovely line, Amy. But do you know what happens to people that “play fair” and “by the rules”? Suddenly, Shilo’s smile disappears, his expression that of serious hatred.. They get sidelined for two years. They get put in the back while the rule-breakers take charge. Monarchy, Red Rayne, Rachel Foxx, Christy Matthews, the list is so damn long. And Amy, the only reason I am entertaining any notion you’ve said is because it is entertaining to me. Because for a woman with supposedly years and years of experience, you are, without a doubt, the dumbest veteran I have ever laid eyes on. A smirk returns as Shilo twirls the mask in his hands. What? Do you think you can snap your fingers and SCW will be clean? Is that it? That you can twirl around on the spot and fix SCW’s “problems” like Mr. Clean? That’s the kind of bullshit a rookie like Konrad Raab would say. And I can forgive him for that because he’s a moron and can’t do shit. But you? A veteran saying that? Are you just trying to get the latest sound byte? Or are you scrambling for words because I made you look like a fool at Breakdown? I told you what I was going to do and guess what? There wasn’t a damn thing you could do to stop me. There wasn’t a damn thing ANYONE could do to stop me. I told you that I would make you pay. That I would make you suffer for what you cost me and now? You’ve got a bruised back. Might as well be the world’s biggest bullseye. It’s a bullseye that says “Eliminate me! I’m an easy target!”. But back to your lack of intelligence, Amy. Let me just spout out a few names for you here. The Mercenaries. Shawn Winters. Jason Zero. Christian Savior. Cid Turner. Greg Cherry. Know what these guys have in common? Hall of Fame inductees. Yet if you did something more than just run your mouth and actually did your research, you would know just what these guys were famous for. Breaking the rules. Forcing their will onto SCW. You take a look at the World Champions of this year besides yourself and how do you think they got their big start? Their big push? I guarantee you that Syren was not always the pushover “happy girl” she is now. There was a time that she was the biggest bitch in SCW. Bar none. Rule breakers, Amy, are the ones that redefine the rules and are the ones that get ahead. That’s how it’s been. That’s how it’s ALWAYS been in SCW. Your little speech? Your “nice-girl” routine? Other than obvious and overused? Trust me. It gets you nowhere. It gets you nothing! Rolling his shoulders back, the Clown Prince runs his hand along the rusted chains that hang from above. Oh yes, you are a former World Champion. Bravo. We cannot EVER be tired of hearing you talk about that. But you want to do know the really, REALLY, sad truth about your little reign? Other than you needed two tries to do it? It’s how long it DIDN’T last. A chuckle escapes the lips of the jester. Yes, Amy, you were on top of the mountain of SCW – for a glorious 30 some days. One month. From March 6th to April 6th. That’s how far your “good form” and your “abilities” got you, Amy. Meanwhile, I seem to recall how you failed to become Adrenaline Champion on three separate occasions, you failed at Best of the Best both times and, just in case you didn’t hear me, your title reign as World Champion was over in one single month. Congratulations, you're up there with Masquerade and Katie Steward in terms of reign length. Good for you! Yet you still don’t know why me facing you at Breakdown wasn’t worth my time? Because, like I told you at Breakdown – I realized that your title reign was nothing more than a fluke. You failed over and over again this last year, despite claims of “being noticed” and your only “moment” of greatness was over in a few weeks. In other words, not worth me breaking my back over. That is the difference between you and me – and really, that’s the difference between me and practically every single person in this royale. It's called picking your battles. Knowing when to fight and put in the effort and when not to waste your time. I had a choice in our match. Either to be a “good winner” or to be relevant. To be noticed and to make a statement. I chose the latter and what do you know? You got nowhere and I got noticed by Chad Evans. Imagine that. By the way, I said practically because, while I see Ravyn, Syren and the Streets involved in this, I also see at least two dozen people that are just like you. Flashes of greatness that ultimately were forgotten by SCW. Just like the reign of Rachel Foxx will be as Heavyweight Champion when she faces Ace Marshall. People that don’t think smart. They just wrestle because “they wanna”. Knock me down, insult me, I don’t give a shit, but unlike most of the people in this royale, I have done what they are desiring to do. I have been where they are all just wishing to go. Shilo slowly walks around the graveyard carnival, the camera following his every step. He holds up the mask to the camera. And the reality is that I can see your little “act”, Amy. The mask you put on, calling forth all those with “honour” and “code”. I see it for what it is. It’s a plea. A desperate cry for help because of the bullseye I painted on your back. It’s a cry for help because, like I said, you couldn’t stop me on Breakdown and you know it. While I can’t swing a chair to win this royale –deep down, you can’t really win this royale at all, can you? I mean, let’s just look at the numbers, shall we? Red Rayne, the most dangerous woman in SCW today. Ravyn, the most dominant singles champion in SCW. Syren, the best female wrestler in the world. Kelcey Wallace, the Perfect 10. I could go on but these women are perhaps the best choices in this kind of match. They have been the most dominant people in SCW for years. At least two of these women are going to make it to the final five. It’s a forgone conclusion. Because that’s what they do. That is what they always do! That is how dominant they are. The rest of you? The Vixen Cains, the David Millers, the Amy Chastaines? You are filler. Talented, undoubtedly, with abilities that allowed you to come here and do one or two things worthwhile. But the breed that these women are – the breed that I am – that is what catapults us, like shooting out of a cannon, into the main-event level. The rest of you are just bit-players meant to hold us up onto your shoulders. That is all. With a shake of his head, Shilo turns back towards the camera. You’re not going to win the royale, Amy, anymore than Miller will or Katie Steward will or any of those mid-card people will. See, you and all your little “good guys”? You dream big. A nice, clean SCW? A successful title run? Maybe your face on a poster or two that you can hang on your wall! But ultimately, what you all tend to ignore is the price that is needed to be paid to achieve that dream. You fail to see how much you have to sacrifice. Your life, your health… With a smirk, Shilo points to the scars on his face, a physical memory of a price the jester had paid years ago. Everything. To be the best – to sit on the mountain, as you put it – requires a price of dedication and ability that you, Amy, could not pay. Just like winning this royale requires a price – a sacrifice – and like being a good world champion, it is a price that you and at least 30 other superstars cannot – or will not pay. In fact, I’m expecting most of those entered in this royale to run away and quit SCW as soon as they fail. Ask David Miller – running away has been his trademark. Bout the only thing he can do well on his own without someone holding his hand. Adopting a serious expression again, Shilo looks around the decrepit carnival of rust. To win the battle Royale – you can ask any past winner – requires you to be willing to give up everything – to risk it all because if you don’t, someone who does and is risking everything will just come along and kick you out of the ring and onto the curb. That’s how it works, Amy. That’s how hard people are going to fight. And in the end, whether you will admit to it or not, 90% of them will do whatever it takes to do it, come hook or crook. Would you correct an official’s mistake if it helped you win? Would you take responsibility if you won this royale – won the World title – under controversial circumstances? Maybe you’d own up to it but would you surrender the prize? You can lie to me on camera, Amy, but we both know you wouldn’t surrender a damn thing. Because deep down, you loved being at the top of the mountain. You loved rubbing that fact in the noses of everyone’s faces. “Oh! You all thought I was nothing! Oh, you’re all mad because I was World Champion so quickly! Well, suck it!”. You would take the reward and not care about how it was given to you. Shilo shakes his head. Same is true with everyone in this royale. You call it “unfair”. We call it “opportunity” and that is why I have held that World championship longer than anyone else in SCW. Because I took my opportunities when they came… And finally, after two years of waiting…an opportunity has FINALLY come my way. With a grin, Shilo moves inside the big-top tent. The night sky blows around him and enters the tent with him. Several candles are lit in the centre and along the paths to mark the way. After so long, I finally have a chance to get out of this damn pergatory that my career is in. Because I know exactly how to win a royale. I know exactly what is needed to be given. And I have waited two long years to be prepared to pay it. I was not ready before. I still believed that it was all about “the people’s entertainment”. It was all about “what they wanted”. I was foolish, Amy. I can admit that. I was stupid and naïve because I believed that if I worked hard and fought for them – for their entertainment – that, in time, I would be given my chance to regain the spotlight. I had to learn the very cold truth. That they don’t care what happens to you. None of the fans and not the SCW corporate. That, for all you do - you? Me? We’re all replaceable, Amy. That’s why I said that half the roster could leave SCW as soon as they were eliminated this Sunday and no one- not one soul would bat an eyelash. They don’t care about us, Amy. They never have and never will. We are all replaceable. Even a trend-setter entertainer like me. That… The former World Champion takes a deep breath before looking down at his mask in his hands. That was the hardest thing to come to terms with. That after all I had given them, they would cast me aside so easily without a care, happy to replace me with the likes of you, Selena Frost, Regan Street and Ace Marshall. I had to learn this and learn it I did. I learned that, in the end, the only person whose’s entertainment matters…is mine. Shilo’s fingers tighten around his mask. I learned that no price was too high for me to pay to get back what belonged to me. And no…I don’t mean the World Heavyweight title. The jester chuckles at that concept. Look at you all – ending all your little promos with the same note for sound bytes. “Gonna be World Champion”. “Gonna go to Rise to Greatness and become World Champion”. Like it’s a forgone conclusion. Fools… This is another difference between them, you (Amy), and me. I see the reality. You see the “safe SCW” and “good form prevailing” and that you’re “going to be SCW Champion”. I see it as, “villains have existed in SCW long before you came here and will exist long after you’re gone”… Also “bad guys sell tickets and make money for the entertainment… also “there is no ‘good form’ when it comes to winning. Winning is winning.” And lastly… Shilo cups his hands best he can over his mouth to echo his voice. NONE OF US ARE FIGHTING FOR THE WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP! You know, you guys really are fucking stupid. I mean, unbelievably. You think this royale will be instant World title for you. It doesn’t. That’s not what the prize is. The prize is the CHANCE to become World Champion. To become the number one contender at Rise to Greatness. In short, the battle for the reward you want only begins after you win the royale. HA HA HA! Oh, I can just imagine so many of you crying your little eyes out because I’ve just made you realize how impossible your dreams and tag lines at the end of your promos are! I love it! Shilo laughs before shrugging his shoulders. I don’t have to worry about that. See, to me, the prize was never about the World title. It wasn’t. Why would I have THAT be my priority? I’ve won the damn thing four times. No, my goal has always been to get back the one thing SCW took from me. Shilo’s hand shoots to the skies. My spotlight. Since I returned to SCW two years ago, SCW has kept the spotlight from me and refused to give it back. So all I have done is fight and learn and rebuild my brand – myself – so that I could take it back by force! Because I want the brightest spotlight in all of SCW. A spotlight that makes all other spotlights look dim and insignificant in comparison. I want the spotlight of the main-event of Rise to Greatness! The word “Greatness” echoes throughout the tent. The brightest spotlight in all of SCW. I want it. I need it. It belongs to me! And I am going to take it back for the fourth time! Without hesitation, Valiant slides the mask over his face, the presentation of the Blood-Stained Joker complete. He stares at the camera as he stands before the camera. That is why I am here. Back to where it all began. Before the Sky of Dreams, the Roach Motel and before the Tour De Necro… I began here. In this carnival. A little rookie with dreams and a passion that no one could stop. And I travelled all over the world from this place to accomplish that dream. Now? My new dream is before me and I will use this place that I once called home as a starting ground, amassing the tools I need to pay the price to win this royale. The eternally smiling jester tilts his head. Because there is one thing, aside from entertaining that I do better than anyone else. I win when it matters. See, unlike Amy Chastaine, I don’t need second or third or fourth chances to win big. I need only one. Only one chance to succeed and become a champion. Why do you think SCW hasn’t given me a title shot to ANY title in two years? Because they know this reality. They know this to be a fact! In 2009, three months into my career in SCW, I was handed a United States title shot. One chance to breakout in my career. I won it. Weeks later, tag-team opportunity. Won the titles. A year and a half later, I was given ONE chance to win the World and United States title at once. Won. Do you require more proof? Heh heh heh… How bout this! Faster than one could see, Shilo reaches into his pocket to pull out a golden ticket. On it is printed the number forty. Shilo’s laugh can be heard as he holds out the item to the viewers. Four superstars were chosen with the opportunity to be named the number forty entrant. In that match, I defeated all of SCW. I defeated its past in Simon Lyman. I defeated its future in Casey Holliday and lastly, I defeated its present when I eliminated former World Champion Shaun Cruze. I needed to win that little match to get the greatest weapon in the royale. I needed to win… And I did. This ticket, fools, means that while you all are killing each other in the ring, hoping to survive, I will enter last. I will enter fresh. While some of you may even be exhausted from other matches – threats like Ravyn Taylor for example – I will be at full strength and I do mean full strength! Do you not get it? Do you not understand how this royale is MINE?! Taking a deep breath, Shilo Valiant looks down at his golden ticket. I have been in two royales in my career. The first one, I made it all the way to the final two before I was eliminated by Greg Cherry. The second one? Valiant looks up, his eyes burning holes into his audience. I won the whole damn thing from start to finish. Try and picture that. There has been some bragging about Syren’s stamina – even yours, Amy – going forty minutes in that World title match. While that is impressive…I went over an hour in the royale…and I still won! Imagine that, Amy – ALL OF YOU! Shilo orders. I know that I can go that far. I know that I can fight that long and more. But I don’t have to! I don’t have to exhaust myself. I can save all that energy and all that power and unleash it on all of you as you lie there tired and weary! An hour of exhaustion and no one could eliminate me. What makes any of you think you can beat me when I am the LAST man to enter the royale?! There is a moment of silence as Shilo holds up his golden ticket. It has worked together far more perfectly than I could have imagined. In my hometown of Toronto, with my golden ticket in hand, I will enter the royale as the final entrant and with it and my mind focused as it was before when I conquered the royale in 2013, I will force SCW to surrender back its brightest spotlight as I am the final person in that ring. I will silence the Chastaines, destroy the Millers and Ravyns – and watch the other 30 or so wrestlers not even get close to me. And then… With a snap of his fingers, a patch from atop the big tent falls off, revealing a stream of moonlight pouring in, creating a perfect spotlight circle down upon the infamous clown. And then I will say a word. A word you all have been dying for me to hear. But it won’t be a word for you or for your entertainment. No! Like this royale, like the Rise to Greatness spotlight and ALL spotlight in SCW soon after, it will all belong to me. Bathing in his spotlight, Shilo stands in the land that gave him his start, but it is the Clown Prince of Entertainment that speaks. Mine, SCW. It will soon all be mine. He whispers before turning on his heel and walking into the dark, his laughing voice once more humming “The Circus Theme Song” as everything fades to black, the jester’s threat looming amidst the darkness. |
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| Kennedy Street | May 28 2016, 10:48 AM Post #25 |
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Sexy Flawless Diva
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[align=center]The Views Expressed by Your Sexy Flawless Diva are That of Her Own and Do Not Reflect Those of the Publisher. Viewer Discretion Is Advised. Please Click On The Bottom Pic After The CD Portion of the RP to Access the Match Shoot, Thanks.[/align] [align=center] [/align][align=center]THE FLAWLESS FLAME[/align] [align=center](Click Title)[/align] |
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2:34 PM Jul 11